Beef + Lamb New Zealand work on telling its story

Beef + Lamb New Zealand has held a workshop to help tell its story. Photo / Michael Craig

New Zealand's red meat sector has taken another step towards positioning New Zealand beef and lamb as a premium food choice globally.

More than 70 people including farmers, meat exporters and government partners, have been meeting to advance the project that will support better sector profitability.

Beef + Lamb New Zealand chief executive Sam McIvor said the sector had been working together for 12 months, designing a new market development plan, and the first piece of it was defining the sector's story.

Beef + Lamb New Zealand CEO Sam McIvor. Photo / Supplied

The workshop included Mike Lee, chief executive of the New York-based food design and innovation agency Studio Industries who encouraged participants to find their authentic food story.

"Stories are what connect people and so any story about food is actually a human story - about the growers and farmers and where and how they produce food.

"Food today is no longer just about sustenance. It's intrinsically linked with social bonds and personal values. "The food consumers eat says something about how they want the world to be, so in essence people are eating their values and these include the way animals are farmed - although food also needs to deliver on taste."

Mr McIvor said New Zealand's red meat producers knew their own story would be bound in the richness of farming families, looking after the land, nourishing and respecting their animals and caring about the consumer experience.

"These themes are a great foundational base from which to further uncover the hidden jewels that will form our story. "Mike challenged us to think about what we may consider mundane as actually profound for our customers."

Mr McIvor said an important part of the story will be to intertwine the verification systems that prove New Zealand beef and lamb is of the highest quality and when consumers buy it, it's a choice they make because they care about the good health of their family and the planet.