Tag Archives: PGP

Foodplus: value added to beef

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More value is to be generated from beef with the development of innovative new products for food, ingredients and healthcare, thanks to the latest Primary Growth Partnership (PGP) programme.

PGP co-funding has been approved by the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) for an $87 million Foodplus programme, run by meat processor and exporter Anzco Foods. The PGP fund is committing $43.5 million over seven years towards the programme, with ANZCO matching that funding.

Foodplus will identify opportunities to create new products, with a particular focus on parts of the beef carcase that currently generate less value. ANZCO has identified three markets for innovative new products: food, ingredients and healthcare.

“Adding further value to the carcase is essential for the future success of the meat industry,” MPI director-general Wayne McNee says. “ANZCO’s vision for Foodplus is relevant and bold and now backed by a significant investment.”

Sir Graeme HarrisonANZCO Foods chairman, Sir Graeme Harrison is enthusiastic about the potential of the new Foodplus programme to enhance business opportunities for the sector.

It will give a vital boost to the industry, he says. “For too long, the meat industry has been criticised as being a production-led commodity business characterised by high volatility and marginal profitability. This government-industry partnership provides a springboard to further transform our industry, to leverage off the inherent strengths of our farming practices and animal health status and to collaborate and capitalise on the benefits of quality New Zealand research and innovation.”

“As Foodplus begins to use the PGP’s comprehensive research opportunities, ANZCO will introduce more projects that will certainly challenge and re-invent the traditional uses of beef cattle in particular.

“The Foodplus initiative will build on the existing expertise within ANZCO Foods but also add considerable new processes and opportunities never before realised in the meat industry,” says Sir Graeme.

Rennie Davidson, chief executive  of ANZCO’s Food & Solutions division says ANZCO welcomed the opportunity to partner with the Crown on the Foodplus programme. “It is a large-scale project that wouldn’t be achievable without collaboration. We’re excited about the potential that this will bring to the sector.”

The company also recently announced a company-wide energy management programme, which will see it working with the Energy Efficiency Conservation Authority’s business unit over two years to achieve savings of $2 million a year in its processing plant energy usage.

ANZCO Foods is a multinational group of companies and one of New Zealand’s largest exporters, with sales of $1.3 billion and employing more than 3,000 staff worldwide.

This article has appeared in Food NZ magazine (February/March 2013) and is reproduced with kind permission.

PGP project suggests meat industry ready to co-operate, says Barber

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Allan BarberYesterday’s announcement of the Red Meat PGP Collaboration Programme for Greater Farmer Profitability at a total investment of $65 million is fantastic news for the whole industry, says meat industry commentator Allan Barber. The key words are ‘collaboration’ and ‘farmer profitability’, he writes.

The first of these has usually been notable by its absence, while the second combination of words has only been evident at irregular intervals.

Half the funding will be made available from the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI)’s Primary Growth partnership fund, while 30 percent will come from farmers through Beef & Lamb New Zealand Ltd (B+LNZ) and Meat Board reserves and the balance from six meat companies, two banks and Deloitte.

B+LNZ’s contribution is contingent on levy paying farmers voting in support of the proposal at its annual meeting on 8 March. Although nothing is ever certain, it would be a shock if this support wasn’t forthcoming, because the programme represents a significant step towards fulfilling the objectives of the Red Meat Sector Strategy conducted by Deloitte and completed nearly two years ago.

The aim of the programme is to lift the performance of all farmers to match that of the best performers which was identified in the strategy as the best way of improving industry profitability. There is a significant gap between the top and bottom performers in farming methods and profitability. If this gap can be closed the gains for the sector and New Zealand are enormous.

The participation of the six meat processors – AFFCO, Alliance, ANZCO, Blue Sky, Progressive Meats and Silver Fern Farms – is as meaningful as it is welcome. These are the key sheepmeat processors which is recognition that it is the sheep meat sector in particular where the greatest gains are to be made. However, the focus behind the farm gate shouldn’t obscure the fact that there are substantial gains to be made from greater collaboration in the market place.

A striking aspect of yesterday’s press releases by Ministry of Primary Industries, B+LNZ, Alliance and Silver Fern Farms (SFF) was the difference in tone between the statements by the two meat companies and the enthusiasm with which Beef & Lamb is greeting the opportunity.

The tone of SFF’s press release was less than enthusiastic, emphasising the need for a levy vote in support before the programme could begin and the care taken to ensure this programme did not cut across SFF’s Farm IQ programme which was the first project out of the blocks.

In spite of a first sentence which confirmed SFF’s support for the collaboration programme, the main impression from the statement was that the company was a somewhat unwilling participant and would be guided by the farmers’ decision. If this happened not to be supportive, I was left with the feeling SFF would not be particularly upset.

In comparison with Keith Cooper’s guarded support for the programme, Alliance chief executive Grant Cuff was positively euphoric, stating:

“This new coordinated collaborative initiative will enhance the knowledge and capability in the sheep and beef sector and help improve farm performance, productivity and profitability.

“New Zealand can make significant gains in its export earnings by ensuring all parts of the value chain collaborate so suppliers are using the best available farm and business management practice and tools.

“This initiative is an important step in the implementation of the Red Meat Sector Strategy. We’re supportive of any steps to lift the industry’s game and improve on-farm profitability.”

After my recent call for a sheep meat strategy, I am cheered by this progress. Admittedly, results won’t happen immediately, but it provides an investment over several years during which industry participants will work together for the collective good.

This must be one of the best possible outcomes for an industry which is noted more for its divisiveness than its potential to cooperate in the interest of a better future for all the parties.

Allan Barber is a meat industry commentator who writes a number of columns on the topics. He has his own blog Barber’s Meaty Issues.

PGP programme being welcomed by industry

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Grant Cuff, Alliance Group.The new PGP programme, Collaboration for Sustainable Growth, announced yesterday is being welcomed by the industry.

Leading meat processor and exporter Alliance Group has welcomed the initiative designed to improve farmer profitability.

Grant Cuff, chief executive of Alliance Group Limited, one of the founding organisations taking part in the initiative says the new co-ordinated collaborative initiative will enhance the knowledge and capability in the sheep and beef sector and help improve farm performance, productivity and profitability.

“New Zealand can make significant gains in its export earning by ensuring all parts of the value chain collaborate so suppliers are using the best available farm and business practice and tools,” he says, adding that the initiative is an important step in the implementation of the Red Meat Sector Strategy (RMSS). “We’re supportive of any steps to lift the industry’s game and improve on-farm profitability.”

Alliance Group is already implementing many of the RMSS recommendations “as we strive to improve sustainable profitability for the sector,” Cuff says.

Alliance Group has invested significantly in technologies such as Hoofprint, VIAscan and Central Progeny Test trials and research into sheepmeat eating quality, which all aim to assist suppliers to produce high quality livestock and improve farm productivity, he says.

Mike Petersen, B+LNZ Ltd chairman.Another programme partner Beef + Lamb NZ Ltd (B+LNZ)’s chairman Mike Petersen has also welcomed the initiative which he says “will be a huge boost for the sector and will accelerate progress in an increasingly collaborative approach across a range of issues that are important for sheep and beef farmers.”

B+LNZ has been working increasingly closely with meat processors in recent years through its joint venture market development programmes and collectively with processors and exporters via the Meat Industry Association (MIA). The Collaboration programme goes behind the farm gate to help improve productivity and profitability and addresses a number of the issues highlighted in the RMSS, developed by B+LNZ Ltd, the Meat Industry Association and the government in 2011.

Red meat industry to work together

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Wayne McNee, MPI.The red meat industry has agreed to work together to promote and assist in the adoption of best practice by sheep and beef farmers, as part of a new $65 million dollar sector development project with Government co-funding.

Wayne McNee, director-general of the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI), has just approved a commitment of up to $32.4 million from MPI’s Primary Growth Partnership Fund (PGP) for the red meat sector’s new Collaboration for Sustainable Growth programme.

This seven-year programme will bring together a number of participants in New Zealand’s red meat sector including co-operatively owned and privately owned processing companies that together account for a substantial majority of New Zealand’s sheep and beef exports, two banks and Beef + Lamb New Zealand Ltd.

It aims to ensure that red meat producers consistently have access to and are able to effectively use the best-available farm and business management practices, by addressing gaps in technology transfer and ensuring stronger co-ordination between organisations and individuals working with farmers.

MPI Director General, Wayne McNee says the new PGP programme will transform the delivery of knowledge and capability within the sheep and beef sector.

“Importantly this is the most comprehensive collaboration of its type ever seen in the red meat sector, and the opportunities are very exciting. The Collaboration programme will build base capability, delivering benefits across the sector and aligned with other PGP programmes.”

The next step to establish this PGP programme is to develop the contract with the Crown and to seek farmer support for their portion of the investment. It is anticipated that once the required farmer and company approvals and contracts are in place programme delivery can begin, expected to be in the third quarter of this year.

Organisations presently in this initiative are: AFFCO, Alliance Group, ANZCO Foods, ANZ Bank, Beef + Lamb New Zealand, Blue Sky Meats, Deloitte, Progressive Meats, Rabobank and Silver Fern Farms. The programme is designed to be open, enabling others to invest. Participants will establish a formal partnership to run the Collaboration programme.

Chairman of the programme’s Steering Group, Dr Scott Champion says the Collaboration programme is built on the findings of the Red Meat Sector Strategy and will deliver significantly on the Strategy’s sector best-practice theme.

“This initiative is evidence that the industry is committed to delivering on the recommendations of the sector strategy. More industry collaboration is high on the list of Strategy actions, and so to have the red meat industry focused on supporting farmers and united in this programme is of major significance. Importantly, the Strategy also underlined the returns available to all farmers by lifting productivity and management towards that of the country’s highest performing farms.”

The PGP programme comprises several elements, including investigating how farmers prefer to receive and use new information and what drives their profitability, as well as benchmarking and integrating relevant databases. New tools, services and knowledge will be packaged and delivered in a range of ways by programme partners.

“With a new awareness of what drives farm profitability, the Collaboration programme will change the sector’s focus from one that is dominated by price to one focused on performance, productivity, profitability and the factors we can control,” Champion said.

“This investment will support the sector to better control its future and ensure confidence for continued investment.”

The Red Meat Sector Strategy was jointly developed by Beef + Lamb New Zealand and the Meat Industry Association, with funding support from the Government. It was released in May 2011.The Strategy identified a range of activities that, when implemented, will improve sector productivity and profitability, and provide greater certainty for participants.

 

New programme to add value to beef

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A new $87 million innovation programme that will look at how more value can be generated from beef carcases has been approved for Government funding.

Ministry for Primary Industries director-general Wayne McNee today announced approved co-funding from the Primary Growth Partnership (PGP) for the new Foodplus programme.

The PGP Fund is committing $43.5 million over seven years for the programme, which is worth $87 million in total and is being run by ANZCO Foods.

Foodplus will identify opportunities to create new products, with a particular focus on parts of the beef carcase that currently generate less value. ANZCO has identified three markets for innovative new products: food, ingredients and healthcare.

ANZCO Foods is a multinational group of companies and one of New Zealand’s largest exporters, with sales of $1.3 billion and employing more than 3,000 staff worldwide. ANZCO Foods also owns processing plants and a cattle feedlot: CMP, Riverlands and Five Star Beef.

“Adding further value to the carcase is essential for the future success of the meat industry,” says McNee. “ANZCO’s vision for Foodplus is relevant and bold and now backed by a significant investment.”

Rennie Davidson, CEO of ANZCO’s Food & Solutions division says ANZCO welcomes the opportunity to partner with the Crown on the Foodplus programme. “It is a large-scale project that wouldn’t be achievable without collaboration. We’re excited about the potential that this will bring to the sector.”

This announcement brings the Government’s investment in meat industry PGP programmes to $129.5 million, for projects worth a total of over half a billion dollars.

Minister welcomes announcement

David Carter, NZ Primary Industries MinisterPrimary Industries Minister David Carter has welcomed the announcement of another successful PGP bid which lifts the total invested in the variety of projects to more than $650 million.

“ANZCO’s proposal to generate more value from the beef carcase with its Foodplus programme is bold and innovative.  This is exactly what PGP is about – transforming great ideas into tangible R&D programmes focussed on results,” says Carter.

“Today’s announcement lifts the total government-industry investment in PGP since its inception three years ago to $665 million.  This is firm proof of the Government’s drive to lift economic growth through primary sector innovation.

“Thanks to the collaborative government-industry approach, we have relevant projects underway across a range of sectors from dairy, arable, red meat and wool to forestry, seafood and aquaculture and manuka honey.

“New Zealand stands to gain from innovative investment in its primary industries because our food, fibre, fishing and forestry sectors are at the heart of our economy,” says the Minister.

ANZCO Foods is a multinational group of companies and one of New Zealand’s largest exporters, with sales of $1.3 billion and employing more than 3000 staff worldwide. The company owns processing plants and a cattle feedlot within a group including CMP, Riverlands and Five Star Beef.

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. 

 

 

Latest PGP round opens

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The Ministry for Primary Industries is calling for applications for its co-investment fund, the Primary Growth Partnership (PGP).

The PGP is a government-industry initiative launched in September 2009 to invest in significant programmes of research and innovation that will boost the economic growth and sustainability of New Zealand’s primary, forestry and food sectors. It has so far committed nearly $600 million of multi-year funding.

PGP Application Round Eight has just opened, and applications must be received by midday, Tuesday 16 October 2012.

Six applications were received for Round Seven, held in April 2012. Of these, three have been approved by the PGP Investment Advisory Panel to develop and present a business plan (two of them after providing further information); one applicant group has been asked to provide a revised proposal and two were declined.

PGP manager Joseph Montgomery says with several projects from previous rounds already in the pipeline, it is possible that Round Eight could be the last for some time as the PGP fund is close to being fully allocated. “We recognise that the lead times for developing projects can be quite long, so we believe it is fair to signal that the PGP fund is nearing full allocation for the immediate future.”

The Investment Advisory Panel will advise Round Eight applicants of results in mid-December 2012.

Channelling innovation

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The Government released the second of its six progress reports –  Building Innovation – under its Business Growth Agenda this week. The move has been welcomed by the Meat Industry Association (MIA).

Building innovation is central to building a more competitive and productive economy, said Prime Minister John Key at a business breakfast launch for the report earlier this week, adding that it gives a clear picture of the more than 50 policy initiatives the Government has underway to improve innovation, competition and the commercialisation of smart ideas and research into new products.

It calls for a doubling of the amount businesses spend on research and development, from 0.54 percent of GDP to more than one percent of GDP.

MIA chief executive Tim Ritchie has welcomed the report, saying that the meat industry is “all for anything that helps in that area.” Industry is very interested in innovation and already has a number of initiatives in place, he says.

“Individual members are involved with a number of Primary Growth Partnership projects, while the industry has also invested in Ovine Automation Ltd, a consortium of nine MIA member companies and the government that is looking at bringing a step change in sheep processing through the use of automation.”

This all adds to innovations individual meat companies are working on in their own workplaces, like Silver Fern Farms’ robotics projects, Ritchie explains.

New Advanced Technology Institute

Meat exporters will also benefit in the future from the new Advanced Technology Institute (ATI) that was announced this week will be named after the late Sir Paul Callaghan. It is to receive $166 million over the next four years and is one of the initiatives to grow business research and development further.

The Institute will be a one-stop shop that will help high-tech firms become more competitive by better connecting them with innovation and business development expertise within the institute, around the country and internationally, Steven Joyce, science and innovation minister says.

‘It will focus on industries with significant growth potential such as food and beverage manufacturing, agri-technologies, digital technologies, health technologies and therapeutics manufacturing and high-value wood products.

“The ATI will take over some business development functions that are currently within the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment. This will include the administration of some business research and development grants,” Joyce says.

A seven member establishment board has been tasked with having the ATI up and running by the end of the year. Chaired by Sue Suckling, who led the set up of AsureQuality NZ and NZQA, other board members include Industrial Research Ltd (IRL) director and former New Zealand Game Industry Board and Cervena Ltd chairman Richard Janes and Dr Michele Allan, who has leadership experience across many facets of the Australian food industry. They join IRL chair Michael Ludbrook, entrepreneur Neville Jordan, Auckland Transport director Paul Lockey and Plant and Food Research chair Michael Ahie.

Strong support in business community

Business NZ says that there is strong support in the business community for the Government’s systematic approach to building innovation. The ATI is a centrepiece of the innovation policy, says BNZ chief executive Phil O’Reilly.

“But there are many other initiatives including expanded TechNZ funding, better, government procurement policies, National Science challenges, more funding for the Performance-Based Research Fund, refinement of trademark and patents law, more investment in engineering at tertiary institutes, encouragement for multi-nationals to conduct research in NZ and others.

“It is up to business to innovate and grow and take up the Government’s invitation to keep the lines of communication open and provide feedback on how we are travelling towards a high-tech future.”

Nearly quarter of a billion being invested in red meat

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Nearly a quarter of a billion dollars is being invested by the meat industry and the government in projects aimed at adding a potential $3 billion to returns over the next decade.

Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI)’s director-general Wayne McNee took the opportunity at the Red Meat Sector Conference to announce approved funding for the latest Primary Growth Partnership programme, which will enable the production of high-value marbled grass-fed New Zealand beef for premium export and domestic markets.

The initiative will develop marbling in grass-fed beef in the New Zealand beef herd, using Wagyu beef genetics, McNee explained. “MPI will invest in this programme with Brownrigg Agriculture and Firstlight Foods. The PGP is committing $11 million over seven years, for a programme worth a total of $23.7 million.”

Marbling, the distribution of fat through meat, is a primary determinant of quality in table beef in international markets such as Japan, China and the United States. Internationally, such high quality beef is produced mainly from cattle housed in pens and fed grain. ANZCO Foods has been producing a supply of hand-selected steers for Japan, raised on grass but finished on Canterbury grain at the Five Star beef feedlot near Ashburton for over 20 years.

To produce a comparable meat fed using New Zealand grass, the new PGP programme is aiming to develop an integrated value chain for the beef. It will combine high marbling Wagyu sires for the yearly mating of dairy heifers and cows and the development of rearing and grazing systems that will support year-round growth of the cattle.

McNee said the programme aligns well with the Red Meat Sector Strategy.

“The programme will produce unique New Zealand high-value beef for discerning consumers. It will link specialists in dairy farming, cattle breeding, finishing, processing and marketing and deliver market signals effectively right through the value chain,” he said.

David Brownrigg of Brownrigg Agriculture says it will be a significant opportunity for beef and dairy farmers to lift the quality and value of their calves and finished cattle.

“The New Zealand dairy sector represents an under-utilised resource for producing quality beef calves. Brownrigg’s Wagyu crossed with ‘Kiwi’ dairy cows and Angus beef cows will produce outstanding beef and help us lift our game in international markets,” according to Brownrigg.

Gerard Hickey, managing director of Firstlight Foods says a planned marketing programme to selected high-end global consumers will enable beef farmers to build their businesses with confidence.

Minister welcomes announcement

Welcoming the announcement, Minister for Primary Industries David Carter says, “The Government’s total investment so far of more than quarter of a billion dollars in PGP programmes, demonstrates its firm commitment to boosting economic growth through primary sector research and innovation.

“All New Zealanders stand to gain from the partnership because, alongside our internationally prized lamb, our beef sector is pivotal to the success of our economy.”

The announcement lifts the total government-industry PGP spend over the past three years to nearly $600 million. Nearly $86 million of government PGP funding has been allocated to three meat industry projects worth a total of nearly a quarter of a billion dollars to date. These are estimated to potentially put over $3 billion more on the country’s GDP by the mid-2020s.

To date, PGP-supported meat projects include funding of up to $59.5 million over seven years for the $151 million Farm IQ project with partners Silver Fern Farms, PGG Wrightson and Landcorp Farming aimed at creating a demand-driven integrated value chain for red meat. Seven project streams and 18 sub-projects are working to improve the capture and utilisation of both market and farm production information. The information will then support the development of new value-driven genetics and extension work that underpin the programme.

Another $36.6 million PGP project with NZ Merino, including $15.15 million of PGP funding, is looking to develop merino sheep with meat, wool and other products suitable for market demands over the next seven years.

Also in the wings, is a project that has been approved to business plan stage and will potentially to be funded to the tune of $37 million, led and matched by funds from Beef + Lamb NZ Ltd focused on implementing a number on-farm elements of the Red Meat Sector Strategy. Other meat industry projects are also in the pipeline, according to MPI.

The PGP is expected to be fully subscribed by next year, says McNee.

An abridged version of this article appeared in Food NZ magazine (August/September 2012).

Delivered: second Red Meat Sector Conference

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Delivered, as promised: Excellent, inspirational and thought-provoking speakers, all appearing in a packed programme for the 250 delegates attending the second Red Meat Sector conference.

Congratulations must go to the Meat Industry Association (MIA) and Beef + Lamb NZ Ltd (B+LNZ), joint organisers of this year’s well-attended Red Meat Sector Conference at Rydges Lakeland Resort hotel in Queenstown.

Alongside heartening optimism for future demand for red meat, recurrent themes were the massive potential for New Zealand of emerging markets in Asia, especially China, water issues, the need to utilise best practice, the need for all links in the chain to tell the industry’s story to the public, plus the rapid emergence of social media as a tool for communicating with consumers.

In his opening comments, MIA chairman Bill Falconer also noted that, while not as quickly as some would like, encouraging progress is being made on the Red Meat Sector Strategy and that “small starts are being made across the board.” Later in the day Rob Davison, from the B+LNZ Economic Service, outlined a number of matrices that the Economic Service is developing that will help to track progress against the strategy, and these matrices will “focus conversations, thinking and actions to drive the future”.

The Conference also saw the announcement of new Primary Growth Partnership (PGP) funding for the red meat sector, for a project to develop high-value grass-fed marbled beef, using Waygu genetics.

All the presentations were a veritable smorgasbord of information, packed with facts, statistics and views from many facets of the industry, enabling delegates to pick out what was relevant for their part of the value chain. While every single one of the speakers was passionate and eloquent about their topic, from an export food manufacturing perspective the highlights were excellent presentations from McDonald’s Arron Hoyle and vertically integrated meat processor Agri Beef’s Rick Stott from the US.

Besides the serious business, there was entertainment and laughter too. Lunch – finger food featuring B+LNZ Ambassador chef Ben Battersbury’s speciality “alternative cuts, not cheap cuts” like lamb riblets –  was amusingly heralded with witty comments from him. After dinner speaker Davey Hughes of Swazi Apparel gave an hilarious account of hunting expeditions in Africa and shared a few (tongue-in-cheek) items from his latest collection, including a new ‘mankini’.

Also noteworthy, was a significant Australian presence at the conference in the form of representatives from Meat & Livestock Australia and Aus-Meat. This put physical form to MLA’s managing director Scott Hansen’s opening comment in his presentation that “Australia sees a close collaboration with New Zealand.”

There was positive feedback from delegates, who came from all parts of the sector, including farmers, processors, equipment suppliers, researchers and media.

This article appeared in Food NZ magazine (August/September 2012). Copies of most of the conference presentations are available at www.mia.co.nz or redmeatsector.co.nz.