TheMeatSite Newsletter - 28 January 2010

TheMeatSite Weekly Newsletter

Wednesday 27th January 2010

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Welcome to this week's newsletter

Editorial - Dutch Supermarket Goes for High-Welfare Pigs

Dutch supermarket group, Albert Heijn, is to source all its pig meat from sustainable and welfare-friendly sources from 2011.

The company already has welfare-friendly products through its organic and free-range pig meat but from 2011, all the pig meat sold through the stores will have to adhere to strict welfare standards that have been certified by the national Animal Protection organisation.

The supermarket chain has been working with its suppliers and the welfare organisations to produce a code of practice that includes giving the pigs more space in the pens, giving them distractions and also not using pigs that have been castrated.

Leading Dutch and European meat processor, VION, has been working closely with the supermarket and the farmers to introduce the code of practice.

In the US, John Morrell & Co, part of the giant Smithfield group, is to permanently close its hog processing and fresh meat manufacturing plant in Sioux City, Iowa, from 20 April.

The Sioux City plant processes hogs and produces boneless loins and other fresh pork products.

The Sioux City plant closure will affect approximately 1,450 hourly and salaried employees.

On 20 January 2010, the European Union granted Australia access to its new 20,000 tonne grainfed beef quota, giving Australia a foothold in the EU market.

The duty-free quota, which first became available in August last year, is available to eligible countries on a non-discriminatory basis, says Meat and Livestock Australia. The quota will operate annually (1 July to 30 June) via licences awarded to EU importers.

In Ireland, the report into the contamination of Irish pork with dioxin has finally been published. The report of the Inter-Agency Review Group was established to examine the incident, which occurred at the end of 2008. It sets out some 39 conclusions and recommendations.

Chris Harris

This Week's Feature Articles

We have 4 new features this week:

Long-Term Health Outcomes of Foodborne Pathogens
Scientific investigations must be carried out to draw a true picture of foodborne illnesses and to improve knowledge of them according to a report from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, writes TheMeatSite senior editor, Chris Harris.

US Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Outlook - January 2010
US beef exports have benefited from improved demand in Asian markets in late 2009,according to the USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) January 2010 Livestock, Dairy and Poultry Outlook. Meanwhile in the pig meat sector productivity increases and a smaller than expected decline in fall farrowings are likely to offset most effects of lower 1 December breeding inventories.The export estimate in the poultry sector for fourth-quarter 2009 was increased by 75 million pounds to 1.68 billion pounds.

Japan - Poultry and Products Annual 2009
Broiler meat consumption is expected to be lower this year than in 2009 and imports from Brazil are likely to be impacted particularly, according to Kakuyu Obara in the latest GAIN report from the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service.

Australian Poultry Meat Production Plateaus in 2008
The latest ABARE statistics show a general level of stagnation in the Australian poultry industry following a number of years of growth. The report has been summarised by Jackie Linden for TheMeatSite.