Celtic Pride recently held its supplier day at Celtica Foods, Cross Hands, with 30 Celtic Pride producers in attendance.
As well as a tour around the butchery, presentations were made by representatives of the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (IBERS) and also Marin Blackwell of catering butchers, Direct Meats.
Pip Nicholas of IBERS presented a final summary of the Cantogether Project. Nicholas highlighted the different objectives adopted by ten European countries, including Wales, Spain and Ireland, to design innovative sustainable mixed farming systems.
The aim was to address the challenge of limited natural resources, increased demand for food and climate change.
Dr Sara Morgan also of IBERS presented her final thesis on ‘Grass Fatty Acids to Improve Beef Quality’. The Celtic Pride Scheme was a partner with Aberystwyth University in assessing and comparing levels of poly and unsaturated Fats, omega 3 and omega 6 fatty acids in meat that had been finished on different feeding regimes.
The results revealed that grass fed beef, with a balancing ration, showed significantly higher levels of omega 3 and polyunsaturated fats than cattle finished on other diets.
Blackwell from Direct Meats in Colchester spoke of the importance of building a brand to achieve a “unique selling proposition”. Currently Direct Meats exports many cuts to Hong Kong and Dubai, whilst, pending approval, the company has plans to export its beef to Singapore as well.
Blackwell has been buying ten to 15 bodies of native breed Celtic Pride cattle for the past eight months. He commented that the grass fed element was important to sales as it helped convey a positive message on the quality of beef.
This story was originally published on a previous version of the Meat Management website and so there may be some missing images and formatting issues.
