Forums
New posts
Forum list
Search forums
What's new
New posts
New resources
Latest activity
Trending Threads
Resources
Latest reviews
Search resources
FarmTV
Farm Compare
Search
Tokens/Searches
Calendar
Upcoming Events
Members
Registered members
Current visitors
New Resources
New posts
Log in
Register
What's new
Search
Search
Search titles only
By:
New posts
Forum list
Search forums
Menu
Log in
Register
Navigation
Install the app
Install
More options
Contact us
Close Menu
Forums
Regenerative Agriculture and Direct Drilling
Holistic Farming
"Improving Our Lot" - Planned Holistic Grazing, for starters..
JavaScript is disabled. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding.
You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an
alternative browser
.
Reply to thread
Message
<blockquote data-quote="Farmer Roy" data-source="post: 6733687" data-attributes="member: 71668"><p>getting back to labels</p><p></p><p>I grew up on a family farm</p><p>I have been working in agriculture since I was 18, all of 36 years</p><p>The first 11 years were away from home.</p><p>I have been running my own show for about 25 years, as well as casual or contracting work for others in this time. </p><p>Admittedly, Ive always produced or been involved with commodities, not "food"</p><p>In all that time, either working for others or myself, "labels" have been irrelevant to any selling or marketing.</p><p>There are general guidelines & standards for each commodity ( remember, a lot of our stuff is exported & has to meet very stringent specs & standards, or we risk losing valuable markets ), with very thorough testing & inspections at receival points ( for grains etc ) or abattoirs, along with legally binding Vendors Declarations & traceability. Not to forget testing at the final destination buyers & end users. If you f`uck up or try to cheat, you ARE going to get caught out. You've all seen our "Border Security" type TV shows & how tight our customs / quarantine services are. Our buyers, traders, industry bodies & government standards for our commodities are just as tight . . .</p><p></p><p>a label means NOTHING - unless you are selling DIRECT to the discerning public, with your own branding & story . . .</p><p>Very difficult if you are selling grain or meat into bulk commodity markets - which at the end of the day is where MOST of our modern / western / industrialised agricultural products end up. Especially in low population, export reliant markets like ours. Even if EVERY person in Australia only bought "Organic" ( for example ) beef, or bread, that is still a minor portion of our total output . . . The rest is just bulk commodities traded on international markets. Be it wheat, cotton, beef or SMP . . .</p><p></p><p>bulk commodities, whether its grain, fibre, meat ( & I assume milk, but I have no experience in this ) are all extensively screened, graded & tested by the buyers anyway, so THAT is the only thing that matters. We produce commodities to the requirements of the buyers, end users & food producers. That is all that matters, from a selling point of view, not the restrictive limits of an accreditation association or board, whose only reason for existence is THEIR continued survival</p><p></p><p>labels mean a lot more to a supermarket selling "food", than to farmers selling "commodities". If a supermarket requires certain standards, it will make sure the producer IS to THEIR standards, not just because the grower has a "label"</p><p></p><p><strong>if you are selling your produce direct, in the local town, or at farmers markets, or by mail order ( as I know a number of people here do ) then I think establishing a connection with your customer, having a "story" to tell, explaining your processes & ideology, maybe even encouraging farm visits, is a far GREATER marketing tool than a "label"</strong></p><p>I think people are smarter than that, they are getting cynical about low fat / low sugar / sustainable / green / eco friendly etc etc terms & labels. If mega corporate evil bar stards like Nestle start using them, then they have no credibility for anyone else</p><p><strong>Don't open your farm up to inspectors & clipboards & rules - open them up to your customers & their money instead !!!!</strong></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Farmer Roy, post: 6733687, member: 71668"] getting back to labels I grew up on a family farm I have been working in agriculture since I was 18, all of 36 years The first 11 years were away from home. I have been running my own show for about 25 years, as well as casual or contracting work for others in this time. Admittedly, Ive always produced or been involved with commodities, not "food" In all that time, either working for others or myself, "labels" have been irrelevant to any selling or marketing. There are general guidelines & standards for each commodity ( remember, a lot of our stuff is exported & has to meet very stringent specs & standards, or we risk losing valuable markets ), with very thorough testing & inspections at receival points ( for grains etc ) or abattoirs, along with legally binding Vendors Declarations & traceability. Not to forget testing at the final destination buyers & end users. If you f`uck up or try to cheat, you ARE going to get caught out. You've all seen our "Border Security" type TV shows & how tight our customs / quarantine services are. Our buyers, traders, industry bodies & government standards for our commodities are just as tight . . . a label means NOTHING - unless you are selling DIRECT to the discerning public, with your own branding & story . . . Very difficult if you are selling grain or meat into bulk commodity markets - which at the end of the day is where MOST of our modern / western / industrialised agricultural products end up. Especially in low population, export reliant markets like ours. Even if EVERY person in Australia only bought "Organic" ( for example ) beef, or bread, that is still a minor portion of our total output . . . The rest is just bulk commodities traded on international markets. Be it wheat, cotton, beef or SMP . . . bulk commodities, whether its grain, fibre, meat ( & I assume milk, but I have no experience in this ) are all extensively screened, graded & tested by the buyers anyway, so THAT is the only thing that matters. We produce commodities to the requirements of the buyers, end users & food producers. That is all that matters, from a selling point of view, not the restrictive limits of an accreditation association or board, whose only reason for existence is THEIR continued survival labels mean a lot more to a supermarket selling "food", than to farmers selling "commodities". If a supermarket requires certain standards, it will make sure the producer IS to THEIR standards, not just because the grower has a "label" [B]if you are selling your produce direct, in the local town, or at farmers markets, or by mail order ( as I know a number of people here do ) then I think establishing a connection with your customer, having a "story" to tell, explaining your processes & ideology, maybe even encouraging farm visits, is a far GREATER marketing tool than a "label"[/B] I think people are smarter than that, they are getting cynical about low fat / low sugar / sustainable / green / eco friendly etc etc terms & labels. If mega corporate evil bar stards like Nestle start using them, then they have no credibility for anyone else [B]Don't open your farm up to inspectors & clipboards & rules - open them up to your customers & their money instead !!!![/B] [/QUOTE]
Insert quotes…
Verification
Post reply
Forums
Regenerative Agriculture and Direct Drilling
Holistic Farming
"Improving Our Lot" - Planned Holistic Grazing, for starters..
This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.
Accept
Learn more…
Top