The mince market is not just about beef and lamb. Pork mince, although a small player in the total market, is starting to gain popularity and market share.

Spaghetti bolognese is off the menu,” screamed the Daily Mail last September. The paper claimed that the price of 
value-tier mince had broken the “psychologically important” £1 barrier for the first time in two years, with a 25% increase in pack prices making family staple spaghetti bolognese “too expensive” for British families. 


As nothing seems to stop the rise in input prices, processors are more inclined to cut costs on sauces and additives, leaving ingredients companies with a challenge. MRC brand manager Scott Dixon says: “The biggest issue we face at the moment is value for money. Companies are definitely trying to cut down, so we are being squeezed and doing the same to our suppliers.”

The press this year has been filled with news of rising unemployment, with newspapers gleefully pouncing on figures of 1m young people out of work, as stagnant growth and fears of double-dip recession stifle investment and pitch the UK into a self-fulfilling spiral of decline.

The retail sector is still suffering from the recession, and saw its weakest sales growth for six months in November, with only 0.7%, according to the latest figures released by the British Retail Consortium (BRC). But as the overall sector struggles to stay on its feet, it is not all doom and gloom for the food industry. In fact, things are picking up, and inflation is even expected to go down in 2012. 

Refrigeration can account for as much as 70% of a meat plant’s energy consumption, particularly in abattoirs, so inefficiencies can have a huge impact on a business’ energy bills and carbon footprint. With another big hike in energy prices announced by the major suppliers this summer and a 15% reduction in the discount on the Climate Change Levy introduced in April, things are only set to get worse. But refrigeration does not have to cost the earth. With some well-placed investment and careful maintenance, it is possible to reduce energy bills and environmental impact, from the kill right through to the shop floor.

Despite the economic uncertainties in Ireland following the multi-billion euro rescue package in November 2010, the Irish meat and livestock industry has proved remarkably resilient during the last year, driven primarily by the strength of its export market. With the agricultural sector maintaining its position as the country’s largest indigenous industry and accounting for one in seven jobs, the agri-food sector has been recognised as key to rallying Ireland out of its economic stupor and lead it back to growth.

Describing some of the incidents of alleged bullying reported by his staff in recent months, Food Standards Agency (FSA) head Tim Smith gives the impression of someone who has seen — and heard — about as much as he is willing to put up with.

“It seems clear to me, for as long as I have been here, that in very small numbers of plants, but at a very unpleasant and unwelcome level, there has been systematic and routine bullying and harassment of our staff,” he says.

History has it that French King Henry IV, who was famous for showing great care for the welfare of his subjects, once proclaimed: “I want there to be no peasant in my realm so poor that he cannot have a chicken in his pot every Sunday.” Ex-US president Herbert Hoover went on to paraphrase the benevolent monarch for his 1928 election campaign, with advertisements promising “a chicken in every pot” if the Republicans won power.

City analysts have applauded Tesco’s new price positioning strategy as the right move for the retailer, but have warned that it risks destabilising the sector and potentially sparking off a price war.

The rise of the premium sausage has helped speed up developments in terms of product flavour and nutritional content. The growth of gourmet sausages has given a boost to gluten-free versions, with higher meat content and improved recipes providing a tastier alternative than was previously available.

As red meat takes another round of battering in the press, and sales across the fresh-meat sector fluctuate, the nation’s love affair with the great British sausage seems set to continue, despite gloomy summer weather during key barbecue months, the continued squeeze on household budgets, and rising pork prices.

The meat industry may soon be able to send its waste plastic packaging trays and film for recycling into high-quality diesel fuel rather than incinerating it or sending it to landfill. 


Specialist solicitor Catherine Henney, from Eversheds, highlights five common pitfalls that 
health-and-safety lawyers frequently see

Campylobacter, the bacteria most commonly responsible for food poisoning, made 198,252 ill in Europe in 2009. According to the EU’s food-borne illnesses summary report, it affected nearly twice the number of salmonella victims, who numbered 108,614, and vastly outstripped the 1,645 people made ill by listeria.

A dramatic past year for the British beef industry has seen record deadweight prices, strong domestic supply, rocketing exports and falling imports. However, high prices for producers are creating a challenging environment for processors supplying the UK market, which remains in recession mode.

In the month where the euro nearly faced collapse, crippled by the debt problems of Greece, Ireland, Portugal and Spain, it is good to know that the region is still of use somewhere. The continent is key to the export success of English lamb. Indeed, it is these exports (and those of Welsh and Scottish lamb) that have been the good news story in the lamb sector in the past 12 months.

With the Glorious Twelfth hoving into view, thoughts are beginning to turn towards heath and moorland as the season beckons for that most traditional of produce, wild game.

Rising fuel costs and carbon footprint reduction remain key concerns – and drivers of innovation – for logistics providers servicing the meat industry in 2011.

Harnessing and highlighting the environmental positives behind its hilly grass-based production and adding value to its abundant, high-quality raw material are among strategies aimed at sustaining a successful Northern Irish beef and lamb industry.

There can be no doubt that the global demand for pork is huge. A recent study by the agricultural lender Rabobank claims that demand for the meat will grow by 43% to 142 million tonnes (mt) by 2030, ahead of a sheep meat increase of 25% and an improvement in beef consumption of 35%. On top of this, the volume of sales is up in the UK too.

The Welsh red meat industry has undergone dramatic changes over the past two years.

The NFU is currently scrutinising the claims of all the majors and here we publish summaries of those policies. We asked for sustainability policies in regards to meat from Asda, The Co-op, Morrisons, Waitrose, Sainsbury’s and Tesco – however only Asda and Sainbury’s prepared official statements. The other retailers pointed us in the direction of their general CSR statements.

No-one, it seems, can resist a bacon butty, even in a downturn. With doom-laden newspapers reminding Britain of the faltering high street and cuts still to come, the bacon sector has continued to grow over the year, despite a backdrop of economic uncertainty, rising wheat prices and the ongoing crisis facing pig farmers.

The cooked meat market seems to have weathered last year’s tough economic climate extremely well, emerging from the darkest recesses of the downturn with renewed vigour and increased sales. However, despite an apparent stabilisation in the market, heavy promotion by the major retailers may have been behind some of the increase in sales and some in the industry fear the situation may be unsustainable.

Pork has been riding high on the hog for the last 12 months, with cash-strapped consumers looking for a more affordable option within the red meat category. But with beef prices starting to tumble, have the days of pork bringing home the bacon come to an end?