Eco message is key for beef
We understand that senior food industry heads were nodding approvingly at An Bord Bia’s announcement of an Irish beef-quality tracking initiative at the at the Sial Food Fair in Paris.
An Bord Bia is to track the environmental performance of some 32,000 farms participating in its Beef Quality Assurance Scheme.
This ongoing tracking will highlight the green credentials of Irish beef, such as its low carbon footprint — which is an increasingly marketable eco-feature.
The world’s beef sector figures who met in Paris generally indicated that sales figures were looking positive, and should even improve over the coming 12 to 18 months. Demand for beef is growing, and it seems that product from Argentina and Brazil is becoming less visible — largely, it must be said, because of growing domestic demand.
As a result, Ireland, which is the largest beef exporters in the northern hemisphere, has been finding increasing success in the world’s food markets.
For this reason, An Bord Bia could hardly have chosen a better time to provide scientific proof of the provenance and eco credentials of Ireland’s beef.
The board is also completing the process of accreditation to the internationally recognised specification of the Carbon Trust in Britain, with detailed audits of 200 farms.
Dan Browne, chairman of the board, said this would be the first scheme in the world to incorporate an objective assessment of the carbon footprint, enabling Irish beef farmers to demonstrate their ecological integrity.
“Critically, it will allow the industry to continue to reposition its €1.5bn in export sales among the high value consumer markets of Europe,” he said.
The audits accurately measure the emissions associated with the major beef production systems from both beef and dairy herds to provide a benchmark for future tracking of performance.
Meanwhile, if anyone had any doubts about the wisdom of giving the eco-aware consumer what he/she wants, it is also worth noting the US retailing giant Wal-Mart is also on a drive to prove to its consumers that the group’s purchasing contracts are all traceable, and solely with suppliers who have an assessable environmental impact.
Wal-Mart’s tracking initiative has three components — supporting farmers and their communities; producing more food with fewer resources and less waste; and sustainably sourcing key agricultural products.
For instance, Wal-Mart president and chief executive Mike Duke said: “More than a billion people around the world rely on farming and hundreds of millions of them live on less than $2 a day. Globally, with a booming population, food production must increase roughly 70% to feed nine billion people in 2050. Through sustainable agriculture, Wal-Mart can make a positive difference in food production. Our efforts will help increase farmer incomes, lead to more efficient use of pesticides, fertiliser and water, and provide fresher produce for our customers.”
Traceability has long been an integral part of the way the Irish food sector has produced its wares. Ireland can only push a “green” image because food industry leaders all over the world know that the eco image is backed by production truths.
The Bord Bia move to track the carbon footprint of Irish beef may be exactly what consumers all over the globe now want, but the rollout of this initiative seems very genuine and entirely consistent with the brand image of Irish food. No one has any problem accepting the picture of a line of leading food industry figures nodding their heads to support our efforts at a major food convention in Paris.
That is because the Bord Bia initiative is a credible extension of how those driving Irish food have conducted themselves for years. However, in stark contrast, some nouveau Green warriors come off a bit opportunistic when viewed in the same light.
