Welsh Beef featured in an overall 30% increase in beef exports to Europe from the UK in the first nine months of 2022, said HCC. It also recently showcased PGI Welsh Lamb in Japan.
France and the Netherlands have been among the main recipients of volumes and are behind the increase identified by HMRC and reported in the latest Hybu Cig Cymru-Meat Promotion Wales’ (HCC) monthly Market Bulletin.
Trade data describes how fresh and frozen beef exported from the UK during the nine-month period to September totalled 93,200 tonnes – a near 30% increase on the year.
The news, while factoring in post Covid and the weaker pound, is a positive reflection of HCC’s pan-European campaigning in 2022, including attendance at the top SIAL trade show in October and the hosting of international trade delegates. And there is much more to come, such as the export team attending SIRHA trade show in Lyon in early 2023.
At home, data released by consumer experts Kantar reveals that shoppers have been buying more mince at GB retail than ever before with spend up 11% on the year as cost-of-living pressures hit family budgets.
“Sales of mince accounted for 58% of the total volume of beef sold during the most recent period. As mince sales usually account for around 50-53% of sales, this is a notable difference,” said Glesni Philips, HCC’s intelligence, analysis and business insight executive. In a Market Bulletin beef special edition, she said sales of supermarket own-label, retail lines were soaring. “Demand for beef on the domestic market has changed because shoppers are continuing to adopt coping strategies to mitigate costs- particularly now we are in the run up to Christmas.
“The increase in consumer demand for minced beef in Britain is a worrying trend for the sector as it makes it increasingly difficult to maintain carcase balance - however, there may be some cost-of-living compensation for beef as there is the potential to challenge turkey this Christmas due to price and a number of Avian Influenza outbreaks so far this year,” said Glesni.
She added that HCC was mounting a pre-Christmas marketing campaign to resonate with consumers and promote Welsh Beef as a festive alternative, as well as continuing promotional campaigns to take advantage of buoyant export demand.
HCC’s Market Bulletin for December also contains the latest news on market price trends for sheep and pigs, and is available here.
New trade doors open
Many of the 25,000 hungry visitors to a top Japanese food festival were able to discover that premium quality Welsh Lamb is ???? (‘delicious’ in Japanese!).
The Hitsuji Festival, staged in the setting of the Nakano Central Park in Tokyo, Japan, was back this year to celebrate all things lamb for the first time since 2019. The festival is part of Hybu Cig Cymru-Meat Promotion Wales’ (HCC) comprehensive post-Brexit trade strategy that seeks to open new doors and build on previous gains in the global marketplace, working alongside the Welsh Government’s overseas representatives.
“We have a world-leading product and so it’s vital for our producers that we take it to the world,” said Laura Pickup, HCC’s head of strategic marketing. “This is a unique festival in that it is a huge celebration of lamb and lamb alone and that makes it a fantastic opportunity to bring our succulent Welsh Lamb to a new national table.”
This year’s event brought together suppliers and restaurants from America, Australia, Iceland, New Zealand and Japan and offered dishes such as lamb chops, stews, spices, mutton skewers, fried noodles - and a variety of sake and craft beers to pair with dishes.
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.
