New technology will inevitably shape our industry, says IMTA’s Adrian Simpson. So, do we have to roll with it? There’s no other way…
Back in 1995, as the International Meat Trade Association marked its centenary and the rest of the country debated whether Blur or Oasis should rule the charts, the meat industry faced a different kind of choice. It wasn’t about winners and losers, but about the sort of future the sector wanted to build.
It was also the moment when the internet was starting to edge into everyday life. Few could have imagined how completely it would reshape how we buy, sell and communicate. Yet a recent conversation with a member showed how uneven that journey has been. They pointed out that Export Health Certificates still often rely on paper, a reminder of how progress has come in stages rather than leaps, and of the bigger question the industry still faces: not just where technology is heading, but how we choose to use it.
In 1995, getting online meant switching on a beige desktop computer and listening to a screeching modem dial up. A single phone call could cut you off mid download. Thirty years on, processing power that once guided Apollo missions fits into our pockets, and losing internet access can disrupt governments rather than just hobbies.
For much of the meat trade, change since then has been steady rather than revolutionary. Digital tools have been adopted to solve specific problems rather than as part of a coordinated vision. Invoices moved from carbon paper to spreadsheets and then into accounting systems. Orders shifted from fax to email. Traceability systems became more advanced, driven largely by food safety and regulatory demands. Despite this, the industry still depends heavily on people, paperwork and well-established processes. When trading meat, certainty matters, and the sector is rightly cautious about change that could undermine it.
That tension between what is technically possible and what is practically workable sits at the centre of today’s debate. Since leaving the EU, businesses have had to adapt rapidly to systems such as IPAFFS and the Goods Vehicle Movement Service, and evolving border controls. As Oasis once put it in Some Might Say, oversight has improved in parts, but these systems have also exposed how fragile digital platforms can be when they are bolted onto existing processes rather than properly integrated. Anyone who has spent hours resolving a rejected upload will recognise the problem.
At the same time, the pace of innovation beyond our sector continues to accelerate. Artificial intelligence, automation and data analytics are now everyday tools in logistics, retail and manufacturing. Supermarkets use predictive systems to cut waste; hauliers rely on real-time tracking to optimise routes. Expectations from customers, consumers and regulators don’t stop at the abattoir gate.
UK businesses have always been pragmatic. They adopt what works, discard what doesn’t and remain wary of solutions that ignore operational reality. That mindset will be essential going forward. Digital systems must be shaped with real industry input, tested in live environments and supported by proper training. Without that, technology risks adding cost and frustration rather than competitiveness.
The key question hasn’t really changed since 1995. It’s not whether technology will reshape the meat industry, but how we guide that change. The future won’t be built by chasing every new innovation or by scrapping paper overnight. It will come through collaboration between industry, Government and technology providers, while keeping people, skills and experience at the heart of progress.
