The NZ red meat sector is concerned at reports of a poor quality draft agricultural access offer from the European Union (EU) to New Zealand.

A looming end of June deadline to conclude an Agreement in Principle was also a worry.

European Trade Ministers were due to meet this week to consider the formal revised offer to New Zealand.

However, the Kiwi red meat sector was concerned that the EU’s “rhetoric on ambition” was not being matched in the agreement, Meat Industry Association chief executive Sirma Karapeeva said.

This was due to the poor quality of past market access offers, and recent trade intelligence, she said.

“If these reports are true, then New Zealand red meat exporters would continue to face an unlevel playing field in the EU.”

“We are not prepared to back a deal which offers poor access for our red meat to this important market and an outcome that would simply not be credible.”

Sam McIvor, chief executive of Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ), says agricultural protectionism sends a negative signal to trading partners and is in stark contrast to statements made by the EU Commission about the importance of trade liberalisation and openness, especially at a time where food security is a global concern.

“While New Zealand and the EU have a long history of trade, we are one of the few countries that does not have an FTA with the EU, putting us in similar company to Russia, Iran, Pakistan and India. This puts us at a significant disadvantage compared with the EU’s FTA partners, and is not reflective of the close friendship and reliable partnership between New Zealand and the EU.

NZ Herald

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) — Diners in Singapore are bracing for prices of their national chicken-and-rice dish to soar as neighbouring Malaysia prepares to block exports starting June 1st to increase supplies in its own markets and hold down surging prices.

Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob announced last week that, beginning June 1, Malaysia will ban exports of 3.6 million chickens a month until domestic prices and production stabilize. The move is felt most in Singapore, which sources a third of its poultry from Malaysia.

Almost all the chickens are imported live to Singapore, where they are slaughtered and chilled. Singapore consumers have been rushing to stock up on fresh chicken ahead of the ban, with local media reporting that shelves in some wet markets and supermarkets have been cleared of poultry.

The Singapore Straits Times said chicken sellers predicted the cost of chilled chicken could rise by up to 30%, sending chicken dish prices soaring. The Singapore government has urged consumers to switch to frozen chicken and other alternative meats, and is exploring new markets for fresh chicken.

Malaysia’s ban comes as countries worldwide grapple with soaring food prices, fuelled partly by the Ukraine war. Ukraine is a major exporter of corn and grains that are key components of chicken feed.

AP NEWS

The UK’s various cattle breeds are a ‘unique selling point’ and could be capitalised upon in future US trade, representatives from the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) have said.

Speaking exclusively to Farmers Guardian as part of the FALUK 2022 trip, Ethan Lane, vice president of government affairs at NCBA, said the UK’s breed differentiation in cattle was ’fascinating’ and gave the country a unique position in the market place.

“It is something totally different to what US consumers have been presented with before,” he said.

NCBA senior director of international trade and market access Kent Bacus added: “There is always the temptation when you go into a new market to blend in, but you need to lean into your differences, those micro-regions and descriptions that go with it. That is what makes it uniquely British and gives it a strength.

“When you are pushing those muscle cuts, lean into the West Country profile, the Welsh labels, and other things like that.

“US consumers are not necessarily just looking for the American flag, they are looking for things they can identify with and that is where our industry is starting to shift.”

Hannah Binns / Farmers Guardian

African Swine Fever (ASF) has been detected on a German pig unit close to the French border – a 500km (311 miles) jump from previous known cases.

The outbreak was in a small herd of outdoor pigs near Baden-Wuerttemberg, in western Germany.

Scientists at the Friedrich-Löffler-Institute (FLI) confirmed 16 animals had died from the disease on the farm before it was confirmed.

State vets moved in to cull the remaining pigs after ASF was diagnosed and restriction zones were put in place around the farm.

Officials reckoned there were two commercial farms inside the 3km exclusion zone and almost 60 in the wider 10km surveillance zone.

An investigation is under way to try to establish the source and whether the virus was present in the local wild boar population.

But the commonly held theory is that the long distance from previous cases points to an infection route via human movement.

Jonathan Riley / Farmers Weekly

UK pig farmers have welcomed a decision by Tesco, their biggest customer, to pay an extra £6.6m to pork producers.

It follows a National Pig Association (NPA) letter to Tesco urging it to “do the right thing” and pay more or risk losing its British pork supply base.

The NPA’s chairman, Norfolk farmer Rob Mutimer, said the organisation was “very, very pleased” with the supermarket giant’s offer.

Tesco said its support between March and August would amount to £10m.

The NPA warned four out of five pig producers could go out of business within a year unless Tesco paid more.

Tesco, whose headquarters is in Welwyn Garden City in Hertfordshire, said it had already given the industry £3.4m since March.

BBC

A new drive to encourage people to buy British meat has been launched to tie-in with the Platinum Jubilee.

AHDB’s ‘Royal up your BBQ’ campaign features a number of recipes designed to inspire consumers to use British beef, lamb and pork as part of their bank holiday celebrations.

Carrie McDermid, AHDB’s head of marketing said: “We want to remind people that there is so much more they can do with their barbecue as well as using traditional favourites.

“Pork, beef and lamb steaks, as well as other cuts, not only taste great, but are versatile, readily available and we have provided all the know-how to ‘Royal them up’ to make them fit for the Platinum Jubilee celebrations. The recipes and ideas are guaranteed to be a winner at any street or garden party – and are easy too.”

The campaign will feature on LovePork.co.uk and SimplyBeefandlamb.co.uk and their associated Facebook and Instagram channels from today (May 27) to coincide with UK BBQ Week and the Platinum Jubilee. There will also be a second burst of activity during National BBQ week from July 4.

Jane Thynne / Farmers Guardian

New Zealand has slaughtered 12.8million sheep and lambs in the first half of the 2021/22 season (which began in October), totalling 256,000 tonnes of sheep meat, down 14% on the same time last year.

Exports of sheep meat for first half of the 2021/22 season totalled 200,858 tonnes, also down 14% for the same period last year, matching the drop in production. Lamb exports are currently forecast to end the season down only 1% on last season, with mutton exports down 3.1%, according to the beef and lamb NZ mid-season update.

Exports to China have dropped by 26% year on year, likely due to shipping disruption and lockdowns dampening demand. Demand patterns from China will be a key driver of export performance for the rest of the season, as any volatility in this market will be felt in overall export volumes, with China taking up a market share of over 50%.

Sheep meat to the US has increased by 15%, helped by a relatively low exchange rate between the NZ$ and US$, and exporters utilising the US retail market whilst food service recovers from covid disruption. However, there is caution over future demand in the US; although demand is currently high, as consumers tighten their purse strings, demand is expected to fall.

Exports to the EU are up 18% as supplies on the continent remain tight. Exports to the UK are down 7% due to good domestic supply.

Freya Shuttleworth / AHDB

BRASILIA, April 15 (Reuters) – China’s General Administration of Customs (GACC) has suspended imports from three Brazilian beef exporters – JBS SA, Marfrig and Naturafrig – for one week, the newspaper Valor Economico reported, citing a statement sent to Brazil’s embassy in Beijing.

The decision affects four plants located in Mato Grosso and São Paulo and will take effect on Saturday.

According to the statement, technicians identified the presence of nucleic acid from the new coronavirus on the external packaging of four batches of frozen products from these companies sent to China.

The companies did not immediately reply to requests for comment.

by Anthony Boadle / Reuters

Convenience retailer Co-op has called on other leading supermarkets to back UK pig farmers by selling more British produced pork. Pig farmers have been struggling since before the pandemic and around 60 per cent of the pork consumed in the UK is imported.

Now more retailers have pledged extra help for to support desperate farmers with additional payments – including Co-op which has pledged £19 million – but the retailer has said “it’s too little but not too late to go further.” Co-op has invested the cash to boost its support for British pig farmers by introducing a new pricing model designed to help manage rising production costs.

The Co-op removed imported bacon from its stores five years ago to move to 100 per cent British pork, from chops to bacon and ham. Matt Hood, of Co-op Food, said: “Some of the support for the sector is too little but it’s not too late for supermarkets to do their bit to help more British farmers.

“Switching to UK produced pork is the strongest commitment retailers can give to UK farmers at a time when the sector is experiencing unprecedented spiralling costs. Pig farmers have been facing historically high feed costs even before Christmas, which has now been exacerbated by the conflict in Ukraine.

“As a result, many UK farmers are suffering significant losses, and some tragically have been forced to close their farms. Co-op is a longstanding and leading supporter of British farming and our new pricing model will see us go even further.

by Brett Gibson / Bristol Post

UK exports of beef are up nearly 50 percent compared to the same period a year ago, new figures from HMRC show.

The UK exported 12,600 tonnes of fresh and frozen beef in March, up 14% from February and up 46% compared to the same month a year ago.

While significantly higher year-on-year, the volume was closer to the amount exported in 2019 and 2020.

This meant that the UK shipped 30,800 tonnes of beef during the first quarter of the year, 53% more than the volume shipped during the same period a year ago.

Within this, 9,000 tonnes were sent to Ireland, 7,000 tonnes to France and 5,600 tonnes to the Netherlands.

by Farming UK