Brazilian beef wins global taste award
JBS brand Friboi’s Angus rib-eye steak received three stars, the highest amount, from the Brussels-based International Taste & Quality Institute’s (iTQi) Superior Taste Awards 2017.
Winning the accolade means JBS can now use the well-known iTQi seal of quality on selected beef products.
‘Fuel’ steak sales
Alongside the Angus rib-eye steak, Friboi’s sirloin steak received two stars from the Belgian organisation.
JBS category manager Ivan Vicente Sebastião Junior said the two awards would add “fuel to a locomotive already in motion”.
The premium beef benchmark should, he added, help to “maximise profits” in new markets such as Singapore, to which JBS began exporting last year.
The island city-state of Singapore is full of wealthy individuals and Sebastião Jr said demand for high-quality Brazilian Angus Beef had been rising noticeably since the company began trading there.
Brazilian meat on the ‘right path’
“We have a very high-quality standard and only sell cuts from certified animals,” he added.
“This raises the quality of the products and ensures tenderness and the standard that Angus consumers always expect. Angus beef is a strategic process for the company as it confers prestige and attracts the most demanding audiences.”
Fábio Medeiros, executive manager of Brazil’s Angus Beef programme, said the award JBS received demonstrated the quality of the country’s beef, which has faced serious reputational issues following the rotten meat scandal earlier this year.
“This award shows that we are on the right path. Our meat has an international quality standard, which is now attested to by a respected European institute,” Medeiros added.
