Tag Archives: AgResearch

Beef industry stamps footprint

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The government recently announced that it will not sign up for new commitments under the Kyoto Protocol when the treaty’s first commitment period expires at the end of next year. However, this does not mean the meat industry’s sustainability focus will lessen, or that this country’s greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation efforts for the primary sector are not important.
In August, the New Zealand Beef Footprint study was released highlighting beef productivity gains and giving New Zealand’s beef processors and exporters the comprehensive information they need for their customers about the meat’s carbon footprint.
Meat Industry Association (MIA) chief executive Tim Ritchie says that his organisation had supported the study because sustainability is still a critical issue in important markets.
“While it is possibly not as front-of-mind in markets as it was two or three years ago, sustainability remains very important and greenhouse gas emissions are a key component of sustainability.”
The study has created a benchmark for understanding where greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are occurring across the beef supply chain, including production, processing, transportation and consumption.It has found that the majority (over 90 percent) of emissions occur on the farm. The footprint varies depending on the type of farm, the sex and age of the animals and whether or not animals from the dairy industry are used.
Overall, the weighted New Zealand average GHG emissions from beef animals from sheep and beef farms was 10.5kg CO2-equvalents (CO2-e) per kg of liveweight.Emissions arising from transport to market are extremely low.
Transport accounts for 4.2 percent of emissions, the report shows. In particular, oceanic shipping is very efficient and this study shows it contributes just 1.1-2.7 percent of the total carbon footprint.In addition, consumption accounts for 3.3 percent of emissions while just 2.1 percent comes from processing, which the report notes “is an area over which industry has direct control and where technologies are available to reduce emissions.”
Dr Stewart Ledgard, the lead author of the report says that until there is a globally-agreed methodology for ‘footprinting’ of meat products, it is hard to assess how New Zealand’s footprint compared to others. This study used the Life Cycle Assessment approach, which is consistent with the PAS2050 published standard for GHG footprinting.The beef study was undertaken by AgResearch and funded by the Meat Industry Association, Ballance Agri-Nutrients, Landcorp and the Ministry for Primary Industries greenhouse gas footprinting strategy. B+LNZ Ltd and individual meat processors provided data and information for the study. This adds to a study already completed on New Zealand lamb’s carbon footprint in 2010.

More reading: see ‘A Greenhouse Gas Footprint Study for Exported New Zealand Beef’, M Lieffering, S Ledgard, M Boyes & R Kemp, February 2012.

This article appeared in Food NZ magazine (December 2012/January 2013).

Rendering R&D gets international boost

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The first New Zealand meat industry appointments to the international Fats and Protein Research Association (FPRF) were made recently.

Graham Shortland, chief executive of Waitoa-based Wallace Corporation, is now a director of the Foundation, while meat scientist Mike North, formerly with AgResearch and now project manager for Taranaki Bio Extracts, has been appointed to the FPRF research committee.

Shortland believes that this is a “super opportunity” for the New Zealand and Australian rendering industry to be directly involved in and influence a very credible organisation. “I’m looking forward to taking up the role,” he says.

The US-based FPRF sponsors research on rendered products to enhance current usage and also to develop new uses.

Rendering is an important contributor to revenues for the New Zealand meat industry, producing value-added products, tallow and bone meal (see Food NZ February/March 2010) and also mitigating greenhouse gas emissions. Exports of both products to the year end June 2012 were worth $308 million. Tallow exports grew in value by $16 million to $169 million, with volume rising 15,710 tonnes to 134,177 tonnes, with China taking over two-thirds of the exported product. While the value of meat and bone meal exports – primarily to Indonesia and the US – grew by $10 million to $139 million, the volume fell slightly, by just over 3,000 tonnes, on the previous year to 145,563 tonnes.

Both Wallace Corporation and Taranaki Bio Extracts are members of the Meat Industry Association (MIA)’s Renderers’ Group, which recently received New Zealand Trade & Enterprise funding for a market development project aiming to increase returns by selling rendered products into higher value applications and markets. Insights Shortland and North gain from their involvement with FPRF will be fed back into that project, which is now at stage one: targeted market research.

“We are now starting to see a clearer picture of where we might obtain higher returns for some of our basic commodities,” says Shortland. “The FPRF has carried out research and innovation projects that could well help us move our value-add objectives ahead more speedily.”

Offering his congratulations on their appointment, Renderers’ Group executive member Alan von Tunzelman, general manager of PVL Proteins Ltd and a past president of the World Renderers’ Organisation, said he never thought a nominee from this country would be appointed to a role in the international organisation.

“To get both appointed to the respective roles is a great tribute to how they feel about us as an organisation and as people who can contribute positively and make sensible inputs into the FPRF. This is a wonderful opportunity to advance international research and development into rendering and the great work performed by the Meat Industry Research Institute of New Zealand has a further chance of some new life.”

The Renderers Group runs training workshops, which enable experienced operators and  supervisors to receive the core knowledge necessary for the National Certificate in Meat Processing (Rendering Level 4) and to build networks with others in the industry. In addition, a joint meeting for members with Australian counterparts in March gave further opportunity for international sharing of knowledge.

In consultation with members, the group published the ‘New Zealand Rendering Industry Guidelines for Managing and Assessing Odour’  last year. Copies are available from the MIA.

Find out more about FPRF at its website www.fprf.org.

 

This article first appeared in Food NZ (December 2012/January 2013).

Deer industry about to do “hard yards’

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The time for talking is over and the deer industry is about “to do the hard yards”, says Deer Industry New Zealand (DINZ) chairman, Andy Macfarlane.

Writing in the latest Deer Industry News, Macfarlane says the “industry prize of profitability should be enough to keep us focused on the job.”

The goalpost presented at the 2012 conference has been “determined, reviewed and confirmed as $1.27 per kg venison increase in EBIT by 2022″, achieved from productivity gains alone, Macfarlane explains.

“We also believe we can increase venison tonnage by 50 percent in that time, while simultaneously improving the market return from venison, hence adding to that $1.27 per kg.”

The 50 percent increase in tonnage takes venison output back to a little less than 2007 and 2008 levels, he says, but from an organised stable herd rather than from a reduction of capital stock. The Europe venison marketing strategy and formal access into China and Korea for venison co-products and velvet underpin the on-farm market return. Member processors are now putting together their three-year marketing plans for submission to access increased DINZ funds.

In addition, after consultation with farmers, AgResearch scientists, vets, farm management consultants, processors and educationalists, Primary Growth Partnership funding is being sought from government for on-farm productivity initiatives to deliver an integrated initiative “that we are confident will deliver the additional $1.27 per kg of venison sold,” says Macfarlane, adding that by his calculations it should generate additional industry EBIT of $42 million a year.

To show commitment “by purchasing some of our own ‘training gear’”, industry is being asked to contribute 4 cents per kg of venison fro seven years (initially $900,000 a year).

“The cost is temporary but the return – over $30 per $1 of levy money initially invested – is permanent.”

The title of the PGP bid is ‘The next generation – premium by nature and design’, which he says is significant.

“We have a premium product sold in premium markets. Our animals are pasture-fed and raised in a natural environment. We are poised for our third generation of deer products, produced by our third generation of deer farmers.”

The latest Deer Industry News magazine (Issue 56, October/November 2012),  is out now. 

 

 

Rennie wins first beef and sheep news award

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A brand new award recognising excellence in hard news reporting about any aspect of the beef and sheep industry has been won by Richard Rennie, for a portfolio of articles that appeared in the  NZ Farmers Weekly.

The award, sponsored by Beef + Lamb NZ Ltd, was added to the New Zealand Guild of Agricultural Journalist & Communicators’ annual awards, which were presented in Wellington last Friday evening.

In his articles, Rennie covered a series of issues affecting New Zealand beef and sheep farmers. One tackled the potential damage of fracking to Taranaki farmland – he discovered that not only was the practice not new, it had helped restore marginal coastal farmland into productive pastoral operations and stabilised coastal dune movement. Another covered a forced sale of Alec Campbell’s property after mortgagee action by Rabobank. It revealed the farmer’s claims about stock being within the with-holding period, after being treated with a long-acting drench, were well founded, raising justifiable concerns over food safety as a result of the actions. Transpower’s proposed pylons for a Western Bay of Plenty sheep and beef farm, and the ensuing battle, were the subject of the third item.

The supreme Rongo Award, recognising excellence in agricultural journalism, was won by Auckland-based freelance journalist, Benedict Collins, for a series of programmes on the devastation of the kiwfruit industry by PSA-V, which appeared on Country99TV.

The runner-up was Shawn McAvinue, for articles that appeared in the Southland Times (though he is now working for the Otago Daily Times). This is the first year that TBfree New Zealand has sponsored this award.

At Friday night’s awards dinner, a total of ten awards were presented, nine for journalism and one for photography. The key objectives of the awards are the encouragement and recognition of excellence in agricultural journalism.

Another new sponsor, for an award that has been around for a number years, is Ballance Agri-Nutrients, which has funded the Farm Business Writing Award. The inaugural winner of this award was Tim Cronshaw, of The Press.

The PGG Wrightson Sustainable Land Management Award focuses on local, national and global agribusiness and environmental factors impacting on the sustainability of farm businesses, and was won by Susan Murray, of Radio New Zealand’s Country Life programme

The AgResearch Science Writers Award, established to enhance standards of science writing, especially about pastoral agriculture, was won by Tim Cronshaw of The Press.

The Horticulture New Zealand Journalism Award, set up to recognise excellence in agricultural journalism focusing on New Zealand’s horticulture industry, was won this year by Tim Fulton of New Zealand Farmers Weekly.

The Rural Women of New Zealand Award, which recognises the important contribution women make (and have always made)  in the rural community, was won by Jackie Harrigan for articles which appeared in Country-Wide.

The AGMARDT Agribusiness Award, which recognises high quality information about and effective analysis of national, global and other agribusiness, was won by Hugh Stringleman, for articles which appeared in NZ Farmers Weekly.

The Federated Farmers Rural Photography Award, for a single photo that illustrates a rural event or activity was won by Taranaki Daily News photographer, Jonathan Cameron.

The Guild’s own award is designed to encourage and recognise excellence among journalists with three or less years reporting on agricultural issues, The Agricultural Journalism Encouragement Award, went to John Watson, of Country99TV.

Second Red Meat Sector Conference

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Closing speaker for conference: clinical psychologist Nigel Latta.

High quality speakers and ample opportunities to network are on offer to delegates from the meat industry, farming and their service sectors at this year’s Red Meat Sector Conference.

We’ve been given a sneak preview of the content of the meat industry’s second annual conference, which will take place at the Rydges Lakeland Resort in Queenstown. The event is co-hosted once again by the Meat Industry Association (MIA) and Beef + Lamb New Zealand Ltd (B+LNZ).

Keynote speakers include clinical psychologist, author and self-confessed ‘wearer of socks’ Nigel Latta and Swazi Apparel’s Davey Hughes. They are joined by a dozen or so other presenters to focus once more on the core themes identified in the Red Meat Sector Strategy launched in May 2011.

After scene-setting presentations from Colin James of the Hugo Group and Richard Brown of European market research group GIRA, three sessions will cover the themes of the Sector Strategy.

In session one: meeting the needs of consumers will be the focus of Arron Hoyle of McDonald’s and Murray Johnston of Progressive Enterprises, while John Carroll of AVANZA avocado growers will look at managing market supply.

Australian and US perspectives regarding procurement will be explored in the second session, while best practices will be explored by B+LNZ Economic Service’s Rob Davison, Mark Paine of Dairy NZ and farming leader Doug Avery.

The conference will close with a session on behavioural change from Nigel Latta.

Two major social events are planned during the conference; a Welcome Cocktail Function, supported by Hamburg Sud, to be held on the evening of Sunday 15 July; and a Gala Dinner, sponsored by Maersk Line, to be held on the evening of Monday 16 July at which Davey Hughes of Swazi Apparel will speak.

For the first time, ANZ bank has taken the premier sponsorship role.

Don’t miss out: register online and find more information at www.mia.co.nz.

RED MEAT SECTOR CONFERENCE: THANKS TO SPONSORS

Premier: ANZ

Gala Dinner: Maersk Line

Welcome Cocktail Function: Hamburg Sud NZ Ltd.

Pre-networking drinks: Milmeq

Morning and afternoon teas: Triton Commercial Systems

Gold: AgResearch, Bell Gully, Ecolab, Milmeq and System Controls Ltd.

Silver: Industrial Research Ltd, NAIT Ltd, Port of Tauranga, SATO NZ Ltd and Sealed Air NZ.

Delegate bags: Bemis Flexible Packaging Australasia Ltd.

Other: Marfret Compagnie Maritime.

Published in Food NZ magazine (June/July 2012).

 

Andrew West new vice-chancellor for Lincoln

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Dr Andrew West, former head of AgResearch and current adjunct professor or agribusiness at the University of Waikato, has been appointed as the new vice-chancellor of Lincoln University and took up his new position on 16 April.

Dr West’s career has spanned eduction, science and innovation, agriculture, process manufacturing and tourism. Educated in the UK, Dr West graduated with a BSc in Ecology from the University of Westminister and a PhD from the Council for National Academic Awards prior to emigrating to New Zealand.

He has been particularly influential in his roles as leader of the Institute of Geological & Nuclear Sciences (GNS) and latterly AgResearch Ltd. Throughout his career, Dr West has been involved in a large number of directorships, predominantly with the primary industry sector, but also with a strong emphasis on innovation and commercialisation.

Dr West’s achievements have been recognised by his peers and others as noted by the awarding of the Thomson Medal for outstanding contributions to the development of science and technology from the Royal Society of New Zealand (2008); an Honorary Fellowship of Waikato Institute of Technology (2009); and most recently a Companionship of the Royal Society of New Zealand (2010).

On his appointment, West says it is a privilege “to be asked to lead such a venerated institution, one with a genuinely global and well-earned reputation”. He is looking forward to working with the land-based of New Zealand and those of other countries.