This NFU 'produced to our standards' malarkey

[ollie989898]

Donegal Based Foyle Food Group First to Ship Beef to US - MED Partnership Group

www.medpartnership.com

Donegal Based Foyle Food Group First to Ship Beef to US
Donegal-based Foyle Food Group has shipped its first order of Irish beef to the US, just in time for St Patrick’s Day. The shipment left Donegal on Monday (16/03/2015) and arrived in the US on Tuesday (17/03/2015).

Foyle is one of only two beef producers in all of Europe which have been approved for export of beef to the United States, following the lifting of a 15-year export ban.

Foyle Food Group and the Irish-led Amboy Group, a New Jersey-based Food Management Services company, are responding to the significant market interest generated by the recent launch of Irish beef in New York, Washington DC and Boston by Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney.

The Amboy Group are working with Foyle Food Group and other Irish beef processors to create a strong presence for premium Irish beef brands in the US market.

(Source – Irish Independent – Indo Farming – Declan O Brien – 18/03/2015)

 

[ollie989898]

If the US is so amazing at producing beef, how come it is importing some of it?

Beef Imports

The United States has imported 1.04 billion pounds of beef so far in 2020, up 3.3% from 2019.

beef2live.com

.

U.S. Beef Exports By Country (Year-to-Date)

The United States has exported 1.0 billion pounds of beef so far in 2020, up 6.9% from 2019.

beef2live.com

.

 

[stewart]

If the US is so amazing at producing beef, how come it is importing some of it?

Beef Imports

The United States has imported 1.04 billion pounds of beef so far in 2020, up 3.3% from 2019.

beef2live.com

.

U.S. Beef Exports By Country (Year-to-Date)

The United States has exported 1.0 billion pounds of beef so far in 2020, up 6.9% from 2019.

beef2live.com

.

View attachment 884724View attachment 884725

Possibly the cuts they are importing and exporting.

 

[ollie989898]

Possibly the cuts they are importing and exporting.

Ah I see. So you are saying that actually, the UK could well find the USA a key beef export market?

 

[stewart]

Ah I see. So you are saying that actually, the UK could well find the USA a key beef export market?

It could, all they have to do is produce what the market wants at a competitive price.

 

[Henarar]

got there in the end

 

[stewart]

got there in the end

Got where?

 

[Henarar]

Got where?

What you said

 

[stewart]

What you said

What I said was that the U.K. COULD find the U.S.A. a key export market, the devil is in the detail. I also said that to do so they have to produce what the market wants at a competitive price.

The first hurdle is to produce what the market wants, this will take a huge mindset shift from producing what the farmer wants too produce, in the hope that someone will buy it to producing what the consumer wants to buy. Once that hurdle is overcome the next one is having a a marketing infrastructure in place to supply the market with what it wants when it wants it.

Then comes the difficult part, competing at a price point with your competitors, many of whom have years of marketing skill and have built up relationships with the markets, it is no coincidence that 2 of the top 4 U.S. importers are Antipodean based, despite being a long way from the U.S. market they still jointly account for around 40% of beef imports, around the same as the other 2 in the top 4 that only have a land border between them.

I wish you well in your pursuit of the American market dream.

 

[Werzle]

America imports a fair bit of grass fed NZ beef, its seems they want to eat grass fed beef and sell feedlot beef

 

[stewart]

America imports a fair bit of grass fed NZ beef, its seems they want to eat grass fed beef and sell feedlot beef

Buying quality beef, selling second grade.

 

[Kiwi Pete]

America imports a fair bit of grass fed NZ beef, its seems they want to eat grass fed beef and sell feedlot beef

It's very diverse, both in terms of market and production... from TFF you'd get the impression that all US beef is pumped full of hormones and feedlotted, but that's far from the truth.
The upper end of the US beef market are extremely conscious about provenance and the health/EQ side of beef, while the lower end just want cheap meat for burger patties.... plus the grinder-beef market is seemingly bottomless - this is where much of our bull-beef goes.
Hence at the moment, bull here is a 5-10c/kg higher than prime beef, even if it has dropped 50% in 6 months.

 

[Henarar]

What I said was that the U.K. COULD find the U.S.A. a key export market, the devil is in the detail. I also said that to do so they have to produce what the market wants at a competitive price.

The first hurdle is to produce what the market wants, this will take a huge mindset shift from producing what the farmer wants too produce, in the hope that someone will buy it to producing what the consumer wants to buy. Once that hurdle is overcome the next one is having a a marketing infrastructure in place to supply the market with what it wants when it wants it.

Then comes the difficult part, competing at a price point with your competitors, many of whom have years of marketing skill and have built up relationships with the markets, it is no coincidence that 2 of the top 4 U.S. importers are Antipodean based, despite being a long way from the U.S. market they still jointly account for around 40% of beef imports, around the same as the other 2 in the top 4 that only have a land border between them.

I wish you well in your pursuit of the American market dream.

our customers seem to want to buy what we have now thanks
but thanks for the wishes all the same

 

[Raider112]

If the US is so amazing at producing beef, how come it is importing some of it?

Beef Imports

The United States has imported 1.04 billion pounds of beef so far in 2020, up 3.3% from 2019.

beef2live.com

.

U.S. Beef Exports By Country (Year-to-Date)

The United States has exported 1.0 billion pounds of beef so far in 2020, up 6.9% from 2019.

beef2live.com

.

View attachment 884724View attachment 884725

Maybe the American public don't like hormone fed beef either.

 

[delilah]

OK, back to the OP.

How would this policy proposal work ?
I have copied in several people who should know, yet no-one has responded. Can only assume that no-one knows.

What difference would it make ?
If the objective is to protect farm gate prices, then the assumption within that objective is that farmgate prices are, at present, where folks would want them. Why would you want to protect the status quo, other than the fact that you are happy with the status quo ? This is patently untrue, given the continuing downward pressure on farmgate prices that so many on here continually highlight.

What might be a better policy ?
Rather than a policy of restriction of supply, would it not be more constructive to have a policy that stimulates demand ? There was a proposal for such a policy in the OP, which no-one has commented on. Would such a policy work ? Any thoughts ?

https://www.farminguk.com/news/fran...ic-sector-organic-or-local-by-2022_48536.html

 

[delilah]

Over a million signatories on the NFU petition. The result being what ? Legislation ? Nope, a 'Trade and Agriculture commissioner'. You don't have to look far within food and farming to see that this will be about as much use as a chocolate teapot. Groceries Code Adjudicator anyone ?

 

[stewart]

OK, back to the OP.

What might be a better policy ?
Rather than a policy of restriction of supply, would it not be more constructive to have a policy that stimulates demand ? There was a proposal for such a policy in the OP, which no-one has commented on. Would such a policy work ? Any thoughts ?

https://www.farminguk.com/news/fran...ic-sector-organic-or-local-by-2022_48536.html

Over a million signatories on the NFU petition. The result being what ? Legislation ? Nope, a 'Trade and Agriculture commissioner'. You don't have to look far within food and farming to see that this will be about as much use as a chocolate teapot. Groceries Code Adjudicator anyone ?

The highlighted is the most sensible comment I have seen on trying to lift the price for farmers, discrediting your competition by false accusations of "not produced to our standards" will potentially turn more people towards veganism, resulting in less overall sales for livestock farmers.
Legislation is already in place to ensure that imports meet standards set by the EU or by the UK, if the products do not meet those standards they cannot be imported into either the EU or the UK.

 

[Clive]

I came across this thread just this evening. I have read through all the posts, with a mixture of mirth and incredulity.
Why so, did I hear you ask?
Quite simple really. I urge all you folks, now worried and concerned about the future of British farming, to cast your minds back to the attitude of many of you, before the referendum.
If you have forgotten, just flip back to the very many threads and posts on what you saw as the “golden future of British agriculture, in a Brexit world”!
May I remind you briefly of the primary take aways from your vision of post Brexit farming ..... as seemingly many of you have conveniently or otherwise forgotten.
1. NFU were classed as “traitors”, for supporting remain.
2. All EU regulations were nothing short of stupid “protectionism”, which hampered the derring do, trading and export tendencies of British farmers and businesses.
3. The afore mentioned EU regs as well as the Red Tractor scam, were nothing more than job creation schemes for civil servants.
4. The clamour was for nothing short of a hard no deal Brexit, which would slam big tariffs on food imports.
5. I seem to remember that many of you had a “rightful” expectation that the British people, once freed from the shackles of the spiteful EU, would be proud to support British farmers buying British first.
6. You were excited for a future of growing GM crops, unhindered by the “protectionist” EU.
7. Britain would forge ahead of the EU, by quickly and rapidly agreeing trade deals with all and sundry. Indeed I saw many of you claim, there was a long qeue of countries lined up begging to be first to get a deal with Britain. Needless to say, the EU would have utterly “crapped” themselves and lain prostrate before Liam Fox looking for a deal.
Farming of course would benefit enormously.

And there you have it folks. The foreseen dawn of a golden era for British farming post no deal hard as nails Brexit, in the cold light of the day, now looks like a dim and distant memory.

Finally if I may leave you with one further thought. Farming and rural folks, make up 2.5% of the electorate. You don’t fudgin count when it comes to the real horse trading of trade deals.

When I voted leave I wasn’t 100% sure, today I am

i will frankly be amazed if there still is a EU within the next few years, it’s a absolute mess

 

[fieldfarmer]

I keep saying this but people either don't want to listen or maybe don't want to understand. We export to U.K we have to meet U.K standards both government and Customer standards for instance we have Tesco's Nature's Choice accreditation (at Gold) we have Global GAP (no non conformities). However we will not be supplying much through the U.K summer because the Supermarkets support the U.K farmer rather than buying from us even though they will pay more and generally U.K product is not as nicely packed.
With regard to beef etc it's unlikely that overseas product will enter the market unless it's significantly cheaper or better quality or as is more likely to fill a deficit in local production.
Believe it or not life has been tough for the Supermarkets as well. The cheap food policy is pushed by Governments not retailers that's the reason there are so few Supermarket chains 5% profit only works when you are turning over a lot of money.

Do you have to pay the same minimum wage as our government says we do?

 

[Lowland1]

Do you have to pay the same minimum wage as our government says we do?

Obviously not.