Pig farm scandal may stoke NZ sales of red meat
May 25th, 2009
Farmers are expecting some pick up in domestic sales of beef and lamb in the wake of publicity over Colin Kay’s Levin pig farm. Meat and Wool NZ chairman, Mike Petersen, says “The message we’re conveying is that sheep and beef doesn’t operate like the pork industry.” Petersen says blowback from such negative publicity can be “incredibly damaging” for the pork market. “Clearly consumers will substitute but I don’t expect it to have a big effect on our industries.”
Fedfarmers meat and fibre chairman, Bruce Wills, says tighter standards for white meat production could be introduced as a result of the adverse publicity surrounding intensive pork production techniques. This will mean higher costs to farmers and price increases to consumers. The end result will be red meat becomes more price competitive. “If these farmers are going to have to move to a more free-range system – the price of pork may go up and that’s good for red meat.”
At a broader level, Wills says there’s a take-home message for all farmers, though, from the spotlight on pig farming practices. “The important message for any of us in business, whether they meet standards or not we do have to take account of customer expectations.” Petersen adds it can be a slow recovery for an industry when the public turns on its product or production techniques. “It’s a long, hard slog back” when consumers lose faith in your product.
Copyright © The Main Report Group - NZ AGri-Business
