Meat Trade Journal
Next weekend will see butchers across the UK gather in Newark for the ever-popular Autumn Bakers’ & Butchers’ Fair. Featuring competitions, speakers and the latest market innovations there will be plenty on offer for visitors.
Featuring the irrepressible television legend Keith Chegwin as guest presenter, the fair, which takes place at the Newark Showground, Nottinghamshire, on Sunday 12 October, will offer a wide range of entertainment, challenges and networking for butchers across the UK.
Exhibitors taking part in the show include ingredients companies such as Lucas Ingredients, MRC, Verstegen Spices and Sauces, Dalesman and Innovative Food Ingredients to name a few, through to sundry specialists including Norman Pendred, Scobie & Junor and William Jones Packaging, alongside equipment suppliers, including big names like Bizerba and Bäro Lighting.
Ed Bedington, editor of Meat Trades Journal, which organises the event, said: “There’s a wide range of exhibitors who will be taking part in the fair and, between them, they offer a superb range of companies to suit the needs of the modern butcher.
“If you’re looking to kit out your store with the latest technology, seeking opportunities to improve your lighting, or pick up some tips and ideas on how to boost and improve your range of products, the Bakers’ & Butchers’ Fair is a must-visit.
“We’ve been running the fairs for a number of years now and they’ve always been a great day out for the butchery trade. I look forward to seeing many of you there.”
Alongside the exhibition itself will be a number of competitions, with butchers facing off against their bakery rivals in the National Pie Competition 2014, which is sponsored by Invicta Business Machines. The pie contest features four categories, including Pork Pie, Savoury Pie, Steak and Kidney Pie and Pasties, giving opportunities to compete across a broad spectrum. Previous years have seen the butchery sector dominate against their rival bakers, but this year could see that change.
Other attractions include the UK’s number one sausage competition, Champion of Champions, which sees the best sausages from across the country judged to discover the ultimate sausage-maker. Bedington added: “Competitions are a great way to test your mettle and find out if you’ve got what it takes to rank up against the best of the best. They’re also a great way to promote your products and tell your customers that you’re an award-winning butcher, and if you’re not successful on the day, there’s also a good opportunity to learn and find out how to improve.
“Because the fair offers a number of great competitive events, it’s a great chance for butchers to rub shoulders with some competitive heavyweights and perhaps pick up some hints and tips that might come in useful in the future.”
There will also be a range of presentations and speakers, designed to inspire butchers and help them develop their businesses further. Those speakers will include social media expert Sam Flynn, who will offer insight into how butchers can turn their Facebook and Twitter activity into business wins. Also speaking at the event will be Eblex’s Matthew Southam and Stefan Porter of Market Porter. They will highlight the scale of the opportunity for butchers to offer an online service and, most importantly, explore some of the ways butchers can go about making that a reality.
Demonstrations will also be given on the stage, with presentations on latest product innovations from Lucas Ingredients, and some pie-making insight from Stephen Hallam of pie masters Dickinson & Morris.To register for free entry online to the fair, visit www.bakersandbutchersfair.co.uk.
Morrisons has revealed new beef farming ‘protocol’, which aims to reduce the time it takes to prepare cattle for slaughter by up to 10 months.
The plan, in which participation is voluntary for its beef cattle farmers, will see cattle reach the 340kg deadweight slaughter weight at 14 months as opposed to 22 months. The supermarket reported this would help the industry become “more sustainable and competitive”, while delivering a £397 (40%) cost reduction for producers, according to economic analysis by Scotland’s Rural College.
Morrisons intends to achieve this by selecting cattle on specific genetics, combined with a special feeding programme.
Andrew Loftus, Morrisons agriculture manager, said the plan was already proving popular: ”Our voluntary protocol has already received strong interest from farmers and is intended to help the beef industry become more sustainable and competitive.
“Currently the average beef animal undergoes 2.4 lifetime movements, typically from one farm to another, but with this new protocol we are able to reduce this to just over one on average. This is a big win for the farmer, retailer and the environment.”
Loftus also highlighted reducing the life span of the cattle would subsequently reduce emissions: “Beef production is often criticised as more environmentally damaging than other meats, but this new system means that overall environments costs can be reduced to levels similar to pork.”
As Red Tractor week kicks off, it has been announced that Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) is displaying the Red Tractor logo on its packs for the first time this autumn
KFC will also carry out a national press advertising and social media campaign during Red Tractor Week (15-21 September) to highlight its assurance credentials.
The chain said all its Original Recipe chicken on the bone comes from farms in the UK and Ireland, thus all KFC buckets on sale in the UK will now feature the logo, as well as the statement: “Only Grade A quality chicken, freshly prepared in our kitchen all day, every day. Original Recipe Red Tractor Assured chicken on-the bone.”
Ian Hagg, CSR director for KFC UKI, said: “One hundred per cent of our Original Recipe Chicken on the Bone is Red Tractor-certified and comes from over 500 UK farms. We are proud of our association with Red Tractor standards of welfare and we want our customers to know about it; that’s why we took the decision to put the logo on pack. The unique, new-look buckets will be in stores in time for Red Tractor Week, providing the perfect opportunity to promote our independently audited quality-assured chicken to customers.”
The fast food chain is supporting Red Tractor Week and promoting its sourcing policy by running a full page advertisement in The Sun on Sunday. It is also running a social media photo competition, in which customers are encouraged to upload ‘farm to fork’ themed photos using the hashtag #FarmToFork and #TrustTheTractor.
/>Brand executive for Red Tractor Assurance Georgina Park said: “We’re delighted to hear that the KFC’s famous buckets will now feature our logo. Around 64% of shoppers currently recognise the Red Tractor logo and that number will continue to grow as more brand owners sign up to the Red Tractor scheme and tell their customers about it by using the logo in a prominent position on-pack.
She added: “Red Tractor Week provides a fantastic opportunity for the whole industry to get involved and raise awareness of quality-assured Red Tractor products. Over 650 processors and packers are licensed to use the logo on-pack; that equates to £12 billion-worth of food products each year. Major multiple retailers, foodservice operators and FMCG brands use the logo because they want their products backed by the Red Tractor standards. We are encouraging all our licensees to make the most of the opportunity to promote their products in the run-up to, and throughout, Red Tractor Week.”
The National Farmers’ Union (NFU) is encouraging producers to take to social media to bring retailers who are promoting out-of-season foreign lamb into light.
NFU livestock board chairman said British lamb should be given “pride of place” on supermarket shelves and is urging people to Tweet pictures of supermarkets failing to do so to @NFUtweets using the hashtag #BackBritishFarming.
Sercombe said: “I believe I speak for all livestock farmers when I say that I am bitterly disappointed to see that, at a time of year when there is an ample supply of fresh, tender and delicious new-season lamb available, some retailers are failing to live up to their commitments to support British farming.
“This year has seen an excellent growing season for lamb, and you would think that this would be reflected on the shelves. Instead, as the photos we have been receiving from members show, facings are still failing to promote this fantastic meat at the peak time of year. The strength of feeling farmers have on this was shown at the Royal Welsh this summer.”
Some retailers, namely Tesco, have already come under fire on Twitter for not supporting British lamb, instead choosing to promote New Zealand products
With competitions, speakers and latest innovations on display, butchers are being urged to register for free entry to this Autumn’s Butchers and Bakers Fair.
Taking place at the Newark Showground, Nottinghamshire, and featuring the irrepressible television legend Keith Chegwin as guest presenter, the fair will offer a mix of entertainment, challenge and networking for butchers across the UK.
Entries to the National Pie Competition are still open, and butchers will be facing off against bakers in a bid to claim the prizes during the fair, which takes place at the Newark Showground, Nottinghamshire, on 12 October.
The pie contest features four categories, including Pork Pie, Savoury Pie, Steak and Kidney Pie and Pasties, giving opportunities to compete across a broad spectrum. Previous years have seen the butchery sector dominate against their rival bakers, but this year could see that change.
Other attractions include the UK’s number one sausage competition, Champion of Champions, which sees the best sausages from across the country judged to discover the ultimate sausage maker. Ed Bedington editor of Meat Trades Journal, which organises the events, said: “Champion of Champions is a long running prestigious competition which for many butchers is the ultimate accolade. Being declared the UK’s best sausage maker is a prize worth winning, and even if you are not in the competition, the wider fair activities gives you the chance to mix and mingle with some of the country’s top sausage producers.”
Alongside the competitions. a wide range of exhibitors and companies will be offering their latest products, innovations and technologies to help butchers and bakers in their trade. There will also be a range of presentations and speakers, designed to inspire butchers and help them develop their businesses further.
Sainsbury’s has announced new technology for its sheep farmers, which will “effectively manage parasites, increasing product quality”.
The parasite management technology, Fecpak, allows farmers real-time feedback on parasites, as opposed to sending samples away for testing, which can take time, thus allowing for more regular testing. The technology is being supplied by New Zealand company Techion Group.
According to Techion, after nutrition, parasites are the largest influencing factor on animal performance. “The problem of increasing drug resistance from parasites to the drenches designed to kill them means we have to be smarter on how and when we use them, so it’s important to make use of new technologies to make better decisions,” explained Greg Mirams, founder and managing director of Techion.
The supermarket has already piloted the technology with its sheep farmers. Gareth Owen, a Leicestershire sheep farmer who has been testing the system since December, said “Fecpak is user-friendly and puts accurate information at our fingertips, so we can make decisions sooner on whether we need to drench or not.”
Sainsbury’s is supporting the project through its Agricultural R&D Grant Scheme. Philip Hambling, agriculture manager for lamb and pork at Sainsbury’s, said: “We are delighted to support this project as it makes egg-counting more reliable. More frequent counting will give our farmers the power to make informed decisions that benefit the performance of the flock and make more effective use of anthelmintics.”
Pig prices have fallen to their lowest point since April 2013, as higher supplies and subdued demand have combined to produce a similar picture to that in the sheep meat and cattle sectors.
Bpex said that for the week ended 26 July, the UK-spec DAPP fell to 158.02p per kg, marking a decline for the fourth consecutive week.
AHDB Market Intelligence’s Stephen Howarth told meatinfo.co.uk that domestic production is high, with more pigs and higher carcase weights pushing up supply. He said the breeding herd had stabilised, with improved productivity due to mild weather.
Howarth added that there are more pigs coming in from abroad: “European pig prices are quite a bit lower than ours which has pulled some extra imports in.
”The increased supply has been met with subdued UK demand. Despite good barbecue weather, Howarth told meatinfo.co.uk that this has only slight offset the negative impact of this year’s mild climate, which is not conducive to the consumption of the higher value pork products – frying and roasting cuts.
He added: “I think people are still in a mind state that they have been in for the last few years and watching the pennies.
”However Howarth was also keen to stress that current prices are still historically quite high, and would have been at record levels 18 months ago. He said exports have been steadily rising over the last three years, despite the strengthening of the pound. Feed prices are also low, which helps with producers’ margins.
Research suggests that online shopping is the way forward for butchers, with turnover from online retail expected to rise 175% in five years.
A study into the independent retail sector, commissioned by Eblex, showed that currently relatively few butchers sell online – total butcher’s shop sales are estimated to be worth £2.24 billion annually, but just 0.2% of this is accounted for by online sales. Only 8% of butchers currently offer online shopping, with those shops averaging three orders and an average sales value of £61 a week. However, Eblex said that large growth is expected in this area.
Matthew Southam, Eblex multiple retailer account manager, explained: “This survey provides revealing insight into the butcher’s shop sector and, in particular, the online marketing opportunity. When compared to other food businesses the proportion of turnover accounted for by online sales is quite low for butchers. While that’s to be expected in a sector which prides itself on personal service and where customers want to see and learn about the product they are buying, there is untapped potential for progressive butchers.
“The potential is huge: online retailing is an area that continues to grow as consumers change the way they purchase goods and butchers who offer an online shopping facility stand to benefit. We expect annual online sales to increase by 175% to more than £11m in five years as consumer demand increases and greater numbers of butchers embrace the e-commerce space and offer their customers an alternative, more convenient means of buying their meat.”
The research also suggested a lack of online presence generally within the sector: 67% of surveyed butchers didn’t have a company website. Furthermore, around half said they had no intention of developing a website, giving reasons such as “it would be too difficult”, “no time to deal with a website” and “don’t have a need for one”.
Southam added: “There is perhaps a perception that setting up and maintaining a website needs to be a time-consuming and expensive undertaking. That doesn’t always have to be the case. At Eblex, we are increasingly developing online tools and resources which are designed to help butchers to build their business and make the most of marketing opportunities.
“We recently launched an online image library (www.eblextrade.co.uk), providing retailers with access to a wide variety of beef- and lamb-related images, which they can use when developing and updating their websites. Given the anticipated increase in online sales over the next few years, we are now exploring the possibility of offering website templates to butchers who are members of the Eblex Quality Standard Mark Scheme.”
Ostrich meat is starting to appear on UK supermarket shelves, with Tesco trialling ostrich kebabs, and Lidl and Aldi due to stock the speciality meat later in the year.
Meat Trades Journal’s sister publication The Grocer revealed that Tesco is trialling free-range South African ostrich kebabs in 400 stores and offering 300g packs of four Mossel Bay ostrich kebabs for £5. It also reported that Aldi will be selling ostrich kebabs in September, with Lidl planning to roll out the exotic meat at Christmas.
Tesco’s kebabs are supplied by db foods, a Dorset wholesaler, which supplies a varied selection of meat products, including a diverse game selection. The wholesaler already supplies a large number of butchers with ostrich and the kebabs are available in Whole Food Markets.