News in brief

UK red meat industry in Hong Kong

17-May-2013 - The UK’s red meat industry has taken part in a mission to Hong Kong to exhibit at food and hospitality tradeshow HOFEX.

UK industry defends pig carcase inspection reform

17-May-2013 - Industry leaders in the UK have denied claims that abscesses and tumours could make it into pork products if Brussels relaxes pig inspection rules next week.

Horsemeat: former Freeza director points finger at Europe

16-May-2013 - The ex-director of a meat processor caught up in the European horsemeat scandal has claimed that the fraud was carried out by a big organisation, which specifically targeted burger plants and ready meal manufacturers.

UK welfare group increases pressure for access to port

15-May-2013 - UK animal welfare campaigners are stepping up a campaign in a bid to monitor the live exports of animals to Europe.

IFFA 2013

Multivac claims to buck packaging decline

13-May-2013 - A global player in the packaging sector said it was bucking the general trend and reporting solid growth and was now expanding operations out of its traditional heartland, its leaders informed visitors to the IFFA trade fair in Frankfurt.

NI cattle deaths rise in bad weather

10-May-2013 - Northern Irish beef farmers lost an estimated £3.1m last month and supply shortages are expected later in the year, after adverse weather conditions pushed fallen cattle numbers up by 113%.

Irish farmers in plea for help as fodder crisis mounts

08-May-2013 - Ireland has appealed for EC support to help tackle its animal fodder crisis, as well as an extension of current subsidies for beleaguered cattle farmers.

Moy Park profits bounce back

03-May-2013 - European poultry processor Moy Park has reported a significant recovery in earnings for 2012 despite tough market conditions.

Surge in Brazilian beef exports

03-May-2013 - More than 250,000 tonnes of chilled and frozen beef was exported from Brazil in the first three months of 2013, which was over a third up on last year.

UK pig industry tackles EU non-compliance

02-May-2013 - The British pig industry will start monitoring the UK food chain to ensure that illegal pork is not brought in from farms that are non-compliant with the sow stall ban introduced at the beginning of this year.

Poor weather hits UK lamb levels

30-Apr-2013 - UK lamb slaughterings are likely to be around 7% lower in the coming 2013/14 season, due to adverse weather conditions hitting production hard, forecasters have warned.

Ukraine eases EU cattle ban

29-Apr-2013 - Ukraine has partly lifted restrictions on imports of cattle and small ruminants from Europe, while Russia and Belarus have tightened restrictions over Schmallenberg virus fears.

News in brief

EC gives meat producers a marketing boost

29-Apr-2013 - The European Commission has announced a series of three-year spending programmes to help meat producers from around the European Union (EU) sell their products at home and abroad.

UFU highlights CAP issues to be resolved

24-Apr-2013 - The Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) has said there are still a number of “crucial” issues to be addressed in order to ensure a workable CAP for Northern Ireland.

EU beef demand stays strong, despite horsemeat scandal

22-Apr-2013 - The European horsemeat scandal has not had any significant impact on demand for beef, according to the Rabobank Beef Quarterly Q1 report.

News in brief

McDonald’s switches to Freedom Food pork

19-Apr-2013 - The UK arm of McDonald’s will switch to serve 100% Freedom Food pork from British RSPCA farms in a bid to secure quality, sourcing and meet consumer preferences.

Feature

EU sheep meat sector’s volatility opens up new export opportunities

19-Apr-2013 - A  combination of low prices and production costs, reduction in import volumes from non EU countries, increased production in some sheep meat producing  countries combined with an increasing demand in emerging markets have paved the way for  some EU lamb producers to boost exports and compete on a global scale.

ABP sells Silvercrest to Kepak

19-Apr-2013 - ABP Food Group has announced it is exiting the frozen burger market with the sale of the Irish processing plant which produced a burger containing 29.1% horsemeat.

Horsemeat: EU test results published

17-Apr-2013 - Nearly 5% of products tested for horsemeat across the EU were positive, while 0.5% of those tested positive for bute, the European Commission stated yesterday.

News in brief

Easterbrook returns to McDonald’s as head of brands

17-Apr-2013 - The former president of McDonald’s Europe has been appointed as the burger giant’s global chief brand officer and executive vice-president.

Horsemeat: Bute poses little consumer risk, say EU agencies

16-Apr-2013 - The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) have said that European consumers were probably not harmed through eating illegally contaminated horsemeat during the recent mislabelling scandal.

News in brief

FDF exports workshop

11-Apr-2013 - UK food and drink manufacturers have been invited to the Food and Drink Federation (FDF) exports workshop in a bid to capitalise on export opportunities in central and eastern Europe.

News in brief

Pork drives sales forward at Cranswick

05-Apr-2013 - UK meat processor Cranswick has reported a strong performance in the year to 31 March 2013, with pork volume growth helping drive an impressive sales increase.

Study pinpoints cause of overeating in chickens

03-Apr-2013 - UK scientists have identified what causes fast-growing chicken breeds to overeat, which could help producers develop diets to avoid excessive growth.

EFSA gives opinion on MSM health risks

02-Apr-2013 - Mechanically separated meat (MSM) from poultry and swine carries similar risks to non-mechanically separated meat unless produced using high-pressure production techniques, according to a scientific opinion published by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).