Tag Archives: Meat Industry Association

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).

 

ANZCO MD new B+LNZ director

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New B+LNZ board member: Mark Clarkson

Mark Clarkson, managing director of ANZCO Foods Ltd and a Meat Industry Association (MIA) Council member, has recently been appointed to the Board of Beef +Lamb NZ (B+LNZ) as one of two processor-exporter representatives nominated by the MIA.

Before beginning his current role with ANZCO Foods in March 2004, Clarkson was the chief executive of ANZCO subsidiary CMP Canterbury for 10 years. Prior to that, he was the general manager of Five Star Beef Limited, a 50:50 joint venture with Itoham and ANZCO.

Mark Clarkson joins the other processor-exporter representative on the board, Craig Hickson of Progressive Meats and the six farmer-elected board members.

Clarkson replaces Keith Cooper, chief executive of Silver Fern Farms who resigned earlier this year, having sat on the B+LNZ board since 2009.

Published in Food NZ (June/July 2012).

Controversy over ‘pink slime’ in the US

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Photo: B+LNZ

A controversy blew up in the US in March and April about the use of lean finely textured beef (LFTB) – also pejoratively coined as ‘pink slime’ – in manufactured ground beef.

Lean, finely-textured beef (LFTB) is lean beef that is separated in a manufacturing process from fatty beef trimmings, to reduce wastage. The process involves treating the LFTB with small amounts of ammonium hydroxide gas or citric acid to eliminate any harmful bacteria present.

The process has been approved as safe by the United States Department of Agriculture and it has been reported that over 70 percent of ground beef used in the US is believed to have incorporated LFTB as an ingredient.

However, a range of media commentators, including ABC News and British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver, have criticised the practice. Despite statements by the USDA and meat industry bodies asserting that LFTB is safe for consumption, a number of major retailers and restaurant chains –  including McDonald’s and Burger King – have recently decided not to use LFTB, as a result of considerable negative publicity about the product.

As a result of the controversy, the major producer of LFTB, Beef Products Inc, announced that it is closing down three of its four processing plants. The American Meat Institute estimates that without LFTB, the industry would need 1.5 million additional head of cattle to make up the difference in beef supply.

LFTB is not used in New Zealand, as the leaner, pasture-raised New Zealand beef does not produce the high fat trimmings that provide the raw ingredient for LFTB, the MIA says.

Published in Food NZ (June/July 2012).

Processors win time for E.coli testing

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Meat processors have won extra time to get ready for the introduction of  mandatory testing for the Super Six E.coli Shiga toxin producing (STEC) serogroups for product destined for the US.

The US Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has deferred the original implementation date of 5 March to 4 June 2012, for the required introduction of testing for the Super Six E.coli (non-O157) STEC serogroups (O26, O45, O103, O0111, O121 and O145). The FSIS extension was given to give extra time for processors and laboratories to validate their test methods.

The Meat Industry Association (MIA), through MAF’s Food Safety Authority, had argued for equivalency allowing the transfer of New Zealand’s established E.coli O157:H7 ‘lotting’ arrangements to the Super Six, MIA technical manager Kevin Cresswell says. This argument was accepted – subject to MAF providing the status of the testing method validation of the non-O157 serogroups – meaning that processors here can use an alternative national programme for the sampling of raw beef product for E.coli O157:H7 and six other Shiga toxin-producing E.coli (STEC).

It will simplify the procedure too, saving time and cost, Cresswell explains. “This gives NZ approval to integrate the tests for the six new adulterants with the current E.coli O157:H7 sampling and product disposition protocol.

“This allows for one test per day per premises (as per the current O157) protocol) rather than every consignment having to be retrospectively tested at the same time it is consolidated (by 60 drill samples of frozen cartons as a minimum) as is required by Australia.”

Published in Food NZ magazine (April/May 2012).