Monthly Archives: August 2012

Hickson buys Welsh meat plant

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A meat processing plant in Wales is under new ownership. Progressive Meats’ Craig Hickson and his wife have just bought Cig Calon Cymru (CCC), a meat processor close to Llanelli in South Wales.

CCC is a multi-species plant, primarily processing Welsh Black and cattle and also lambs, employing over 30 staff. The British Farmers Guardian newspaper reports that the deal includes an all new management team, as well as an export partnership for beef. New Zealander Hugh Brown is to take the role of general manager and there is a newly created livestock supply manager.

New Zealand Federated Farmers has supported the move and says that while a recently released PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) report for New Zealand Trade & Enterprise (NZTE) points towards growing New Zealand agribusiness in newer markets such as South America and China, Hickson has proven there is opportunity left in New Zealand’s traditional markets.

“While we must maximise the potential of New Zealand’s land resource, there is an inescapable logic about taking our intellectual property and skills globally,” says Jeanette Maxwell, Federated Farmers meat and fibre chairperson.

“If we take a leaf from the automotive industry, Toyota now makes most of its vehicles outside Japan. The challenge is in having capital markets which can help us seize these opportunities. We also need to be mindful there is still a lot of life left in our ‘old’ markets.”

Maxwell says this is an example of a progressive New Zealand meat company investing offshore. “There are others and they are not intended to simply be a meatpacker for our red meat, but to work in-market with local farmers to build their businesses and the overall market.

Getting inside markets, is what PwC/NZTE is calling for, she says.  “It is not dissimilar to how Fonterra works globally, or how Brazilian meat processors have become strong through global logistics and supply chain management.

“As New Zealand is a leading global exporter of red meat, we start to match that by becoming a leading global processor and marketer as well.”

The move maximises opportunities, markets and above all, returns, Maxwell believes.

In addition to owning Progressive Meats, Craig Hickson, who was named Federated Farmers’ 2012 Agribusiness Person of the Year in July, is also a B+LNZ Ltd director and a major shareholder of sheepmeat processor and exporter Ovation New Zealand. He and his wife also own a 1,500 hectare sheep, beef and venison farm.

Peter Fitz-Herbert is Canada-bound

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Hunterville farmer, Peter Fitz-Herbert is the winner of a Beef + Lamb NZ Ltd agricultural scholarship that will take him to the Five Nations Beef Alliance and Young Ranchers Programme, being held in British Columbia in Canada next month.

The stock-manager on the Fitz-Herbert family farm will accompany B+LNZ Ltd Northern North Island director James Parsons to the Five Nations Beef Alliance. The Alliance is made up of producer organisations from Australia, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand and the US and meets annually to discuss global issues and opportunities for the beef sector.

The Young Ranchers programme will provide Fitz-Herbert with an opportunity to meet other young beef producers and to build an understanding of global beef issues, share their experience and develop networks. There will also be the opportunity to observe how producer representative organisations can collaborate for the benefit of all beef producers worldwide.

Fitz-Herbert manages 2,400 Romney ewes and 220 breeding cattle on the 600 hectare farm which is spread over four separate, mainly hill country farms. Off-farm he is involved with New Zealand Young Farmers, he has been a regional finalist in the National Bank Young Farmer contest and two years running has competed in the Speight’s Coast to Coast race.

Tesco to run hybrid nutritional labelling scheme

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UK retail chain Tesco, a major customer for New Zealand’s meat exporters, has had a change of heart over traffic-light nutritional labelling,  says online food trade magazine Just-Food.

This is a major change in strategy for Tesco which up to now has supported the Guideline Daily Amounts (GDA) approach, the magazine says. Responding to consumer research, Tesco made the announcement last week that it will now be using a hybrid labelling system, including both GDA and traffic light systems.

Philip Clarke, Tesco’s chief executive said Tesco has led the way by giving shoppers clear information about the food they eat and was the first retailer to put nutritional information on the front of its packs in 2005 when it rolled out its GDA labels.

“We always listen to our customers and they have told us by combining our popular GDA labels with traffic light colour coding we can make it even easier for them to make informed and healthy choices about the food they buy,” he said.

The news has been welcomed by British health minister Andrew Lansley, NGOs and public health groups.

The consumer research was conducted by Penn Schoen and Berland and involved 1,002 UK adults aged over 18 in a quantitative online survey.

 

Overseas investment bill defeated

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The Greens’ private members bill restricting, in other words banning, all sales of farmland of more than five hectares to an overseas investor was defeated last week by two votes, writes Allan Barber in his latest blog.

In the article which has also appeared at interest.co.nz, he argues that the Labour Party’s new position,”in support of the Green’s xenophobic attempt” suggests the party has moved light years away from its position of five years ago, when it issued the ’2007 Export Year’, “which says nothing significantly different” from the recently released progress report ‘Building Exports’, part of the current National Government’s Growth Agenda.

“Without overseas investment and shackled by our high debt level, New Zealand cannot possibly aspire to the optimistic export goals of successive Governments from both sides of the political divide,” he says.

He talks to Federated Farmers chair Bruce Wills and compares the NZ situation to Australia’s and concludes that New Zealand can’t afford any reduction in the relative contribution made in 2011 by meat, dairy, wool and horticulture (43 percent of export goods or 34 percent of goods and services), whether or not any progress is made towards the Government’s target.

“Changes of the kind represented to Parliament last week would present a massive head wind.”

Read more …

Burgerfuel’s growth in Middle East

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Auckland-based meat exporter and franchisor Burgerfuel is using its range of halal menu options to fuel its growth in the Middle East, according to a halal market article in NZ Trade & Enterprise’s latest Export News e-newsetter. The company has recently opened outlets in Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia and is now looking further afield in the region. Marketing manager Alexis Lam says the fact that grass-fed New Zealand beef has been halal for some time made the initiative viable in the first place.  “There seems to be a healthy respect for the Halal certification we have in New Zealand,” says Lam. Read more …

Rump steak to biltong

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New Zealand beef rump steak makes excellent biltong, Sciencelens photographer Gerry le Roux and his wife have found. His wife made the pictured biltong – cured meat – right here in New Zealand from a “nice piece of New Zealand rump” steak. Gerry says it’s a very popular delicacy to anyone (who isn’t a vegetarian) who grew up in South Africa, as he did. “And it is (to me) a great meaty snack to nibble on as an alternative to chips or other salty snacks.”
(Photograph ©Sciencelens – used here with permission).

 

 

Venison industry planning productivity improvement

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Moves are afoot to improve the productivity of New Zealand’s venison herd, which could result in an average carcase weight of 64 kg in ten years time, a better quality and improved supply of venison for exporters, along with improved earnings for producers.

A group of 40 participants have had input to the Productivity Improvement Programme report which was endorsed by the Deer Industry New Zealand (DINZ) board in mid-July, after having received support at the 2012 Deer Industry and CERVETEC conferences and endorsed by the New Zealand Deer Farmers’ Association.

Concluding that the venison industry’s productivity mantra ‘More deer, heavier, earlier and better‘ remains valid, the Productivity Leadership Group, lead by Wanaka veterinarian and farmer Dr Mandy Bell, realised that productivity improvements to date had taken place in the market. They determined that money will be better spent now achieving practice change in the deer industry, rather than generating new knowledge. The report has emphasised the importance of implementing new knowledge and best practice on farm and says that the goal of productivity improvement is to produce more profitably, rather than simply increase volume.

Critical areas of the programme of work are: to better manage deer to maintain and achieve optimal health; to look at improvements in feeding; and in the areas of genetics and physiology.

The PLG has calculated achievable targets and an understanding of ‘The Prize’, based on the successful implementation and reasonable levels and rates of adoption of the programme of work among deer industry participants. Targets include an additional nine kg to bring the average carcase weight to 64kg in 10 years time, an increase of 2.8 percent per year for kg output per hind and an additional $1.48 per kg output (earnings before interest and taxes) by 2022.

The draft programme of work is to be discussed with participants in the Productivity Improvement Programme. DINZ is currently planning the implementation of the work and how best to fund it.

You can read more about it in Deer Industry News (issue 55, pages four to five). Click on the photograph above for a pdf of the magazine.

New Zealand’s young retail butcher of the year

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New Zealand’s young butchers have been competing for the 2012 Alto Young Butcher of the Year title.

After an intense day of Grand Final competition, Peter Tuapawa, from Victoria Park New World in Auckland, narrowly beat Abigail Smith, from Pak’nSave Kaitaia for the title.

Kim Doran, from Retail Meat New Zealand, says the race came down to two points.

“Peter and Abigail had tied the Auckland regional competition last month, so we always knew it was going to come down to the smallest of margins,” says Doran.

The finalists in the competition all underwent an exam, interview, practical test and on stage challenge.

“The competition prizes include cash and study tours, but more important for the finalists’ is the title and the chance to say they’re the best in the country,” says Doran.

The other winner on the night was Jared McLeod, from Regent New World in Whangarei, who took out the RMITO Butcher Apprentice of the Year category.

McLeod says it was unreal to win.

“I really wasn’t expecting it, the competition brought together the best apprentices New Zealand has to offer. It just feels great to come out on top,” says McLeod.

The competition is proudly supported by Alto, Retail Meat Industry Training Organisation, Beef + Lamb New Zealand Inc., Dunninghams, Hellers, Kerry Ingredients, NZ Pork, Wilson Hellaby, Cabernet Foods, Natural Farm and Tegel Foods.