Marketing pact for meat closer

The AFFCo meat works at Moerewa is one of two processing companies in Northland. The other is the Silver Fern Farms site at Dargaville. Photo / Mike Barrington

Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) could be close to persuading meat processing and exporting companies to pay half of the up to $9 million annual cost of promotions to market New Zealand meat overseas.

Chairman James Parsons, of Tangowahine Valley, said the 50-50 partnership strategy was viewed favourably by some processors and exporters, but farmers were still waiting for confirmation of overall company support.

However, Meat Industry Excellence (MIE) chairman John McCarthy yesterday claimed the B+LNZ collaborative marketing proposal was "flawed" and would perpetuate the status quo which "doesn't cut it any more".

John McCarthy

MIE was attempting to blend the Silver Fern Farms and Alliance co-operatives to "turn the whole industry around" and improve returns from New Zealand meat production.

Mr McCarthy asked why farmers would want to support the B+LNZ strategy when it did nothing about the 60 different exporters whose competition to market meat was holding down producer prices.

New Zealand produced the best protein in the world and its sheep farmers could probably outperform the dairy sector if they had the right conditions, he said.

"But the cost of production exceeds returns from lambs at the moment."

An upcoming sheep and beef commodity levy review would be a good opportunity to turn B+LNZ into an organisation acting solely for farmer good, rather than for industry good, Mr McCarthy said.

He also said New Zealand was "over-dependent on China", which was "coming back to bite" several sectors.

Mr Parsons said the commodity levy raised about $24 million annually, much of it spent on research, scholarships, trade policies along with about $8 million annually for promoting meat marketing.

B+LNZ had been working intensively with processors and exporters over the past two years to agree a 50:50-funded way of promoting New Zealand sheepmeat and beef and telling the unique "country of origin" story.

"We're at a point now where there is more agreement than not to collaborate and create a new, jointly funded and governed marketing entity to promote our red meat products."

Mr Parsons said with meat processor support, a more detailed business plan could be developed in the coming weeks.

"As an industry we under-invest in marketing our sheepmeat and beef products compared to competing exporting countries and farmers and meat processors agreed there needs to be an 'all of industry' response," he said.