QMS Beef and Lamb Forum

QMS Board member, Jim Arbuckle was Chairman for the day introduced the day.

First speaker was David Jones, Welsh butcher who immigrated to Australia and subsequently worked with Australian Meat & Livestock Commission (He is regional manager in Europe for MLA who is based in Brussels). He said that Australia had had a tough time with drought, fires and flooding.

MLA is a private organisation reformed in 1998, owned by 45000 producer members fully funded by levy, only looking after beef,lamb and goats.

Levy applied is:- Cattle $5.00 per head (raised from $3.50 5yrs ago)
Sheep & Lambs 2% of sale

MLA spends $157m per year. Key aim is for MLA to partner industry to build capacity, so that eventually industry and not MLA is the driver.

Australia is the world's second largest exporter of beef after Brazil

Australia beef exports :-

US1772m to Japan
$900m to USA
$ 604m to Korea
$258m to Russia
$391m to Indonesia
$117m to EU (restricted through quota)

Australian sheepmeat exports to the world

Total US$1.1 billion in sheepmeat exports

$288m to USA
$81m to Japan
$79m to Russia
$226m to Middle East
$25m to South Africa
$117m to EU

Current Industry Issues

“¦”¦and challenges
• Global Credit Crisis
• Long drought
• Competitive products-nutrition
• Food Safety/animal health
• Animal welfare
• Environment

Outlook
Good seasons in northern Australia and good outlook cause herd numbers to rise.
Drought in southern Australia and poor returns from wool cause further fall in sheep flock.

Australia shares the view that demand for lamb requires stimulation.

Andy McGowan made a presentation on Industry Development. QMS spends £1069000 including £470,000 in grants. This is broken down in to seven elements – 5th Quarter, Sheep Strategy, Pigs, Monitor Farms, Eating Quality, Research and Development and Integrity. (i.e. checking out possible contraventions of QMS standards.)

Marketing with Laurent Vernet – Lets get talking

He examined:-
QMS' Marketing Remit
Working with the industry to build markets
Working with the industry to build and strengthen markets by creating an environment to increase and maintain demand for branded Scotch Beef, Scotch Lamb and Specially Selected Pork.

Laurent and QMS work:-

To ensure that all marketing activities segment and target the customers and consumers who are pre-disposed/most likely to buy Scotch Beef, Scotch Lamb and specially Selected Pork and position these brands appropriately.

To undertake, to select and to disseminate markets and consumer information to the industry and other relevant bodies aiming to assist the industry to make informed decisions regarding production and marketing.

To identify and to assist the strategic development of optimum markets for Scottish red meat products.

Assisting the industry to satisfy customer expectations:-

To build and to enhance the consumers' and the customers' appreciateion of generic branded products (Scotch Beef, Scotch Lamb, Specially Selected Pork) aiming to increase the presence of these branded products in the “Perceived-Premium” segments of the market.

Stuart Ashworth also gave an update on the supply situation for beef and lamb and in the afternoon session QMS asked workshops to record feedback on:-
What does QMS do well?
What could QMS do better?
What else should QMS be doing?

Attachments:

• QMS UPDATE 091208.pdf