BULLETIN ISSUE 18: Summer 2017
Building our New Zealand Story … can we survive labgrown meat?
these novel food production methods, many will spurn science in their food and seek quality, nutritious foods from natural sources. As Michael Pollock commented in Growing silently in a lab in Silicon Valley, are muscle his book, In Defense of Food, consumers who desire a cells that will form into what will be called “meat”. Meat healthy diet are best off shopping the perimeter of the without animals. It’s a strange concept that is disgusting grocery store and avoiding all the heavily processed to some and fascinating for others. It’s a vegan paradox foods in the middle. Pollock recommends that we only … can you eat meat if nothing died in the process? For eat food that our grandparents would have recognised. decades, the meat industry has lamented the fact that New Zealand is in a great position to take advantage of they have to deal with an entire carcass not just the this desire for a natural, unprocessed, traditional diet. “choice” bits. Is this the answer? Shall we just grow the Our grass fed meat produced without antibiotics, GMOs, bits we want? hormones and feedlots is certainly something that our grandparents would have recognised. While crafting Regardless of your philosophy and perspective on labour New Zealand story to sell our premium product grown muscle used for food, it offers some interesting to the world, we must take care to ensure the story is paradigm shifts. Is it a “clean” food? Is it better for the protected. Greenlea has collaborated with the Red Meat environment? Advocates claim that livestock accounts for Profit Partnership to develop the New Zealand Farm 14.5 percent of greenhouse gas production – more than Assurance Programme (NZFAP). The NZFAP underpins all transportation combined. Is it safer without the risk the story and will be further developed to include of pathogen contamination during slaughter? Muscle is environmental stewardship, higher welfare and social inherently sterile, but it can be contaminated during the responsibility. Our image as a premium producer of slaughter process. Under laboratory conditions, sterility is food in a pristine environment is one that we are sure much easier to maintain. will resonate with consumers around the world. Talk to your Greenlea livestock agent about how you can get At Greenlea, we believe that while some may gravitate to involved with the NZFAP.
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MUDGEY’S COLUMN The wet is certainly behind us, and a shower of rain wouldn’t go amiss. The blue team is out and the red team, with a touch of other colours, is running the show. I get the feeling that all three of them are in honeymoon phase. Out in the paddock it has certainly been an interesting mix of good and bad. Many parts of the East Coast have had an amazing spring with grass up over the second wire for a couple of months. Other regions have had no spring at all. Also interesting the doom and gloom of pricing from the big players and media that was talked about three months ago still hasn’t kicked in. Surprise, surprise! Who’s always trying to talk the levels down? Just be a little cautious that a wall of bull meat is about to front us and with modern technology those purchasing the product all know the run has started. I can’t see the job falling out of bed, but it will ease a little. I’ve spent a bit of time buying replacement stock the last few weeks. The majority in the paddock but have attended the odd sale. I can’t help thinking the store market is very strong. Also thinking about some of the scenarios that have a huge
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influence on your bottom line. Buying examples: 1) 6 extra bids at auction (3 by yourself/3 by an under bidder) … possibly $40 extra 2) You buy a half load … the carrier has to charge another $5-10 to get home 3) You buy a pen not quite up to spec to fill a load or get a number … huge cost Selling examples: 1) You work your processor over for another 5 cpk on 300kg … $15.00 extra 2) Your processor works you over with a sharp knife with 2-3% less yield or possibly 15kg at $5.50 cpk … $82.50 loss or equivalent of 27 cpk. Food for thought. Work closely with your agent who plays with a straight bat when buying or selling. Remember in this cut throat industry the playing field isn’t always level. We might be stuck with the rainbow team leading the country, but as a farmer you are spoilt for choice. Make the right call. Lastly, thanks for your support over the year. Have a great Christmas and a safe New Year.
SURETRIM
A note from our Managing Director ‌ We have written about the SureTrim standard in two previous newsletters. This was to acknowledge an issue being faced by the industry in relation to the amount of trimming before the scales. This trimming obviously has a direct bearing on farmer returns as every kilo trimmed off is one not being paid for by the meat company. In addition, every kilo of meat going down the offal chute is saved as neck trim rather than as grinding trim in the boning room. This neck trim product can sell at half the price, so a net loss to the farmer and to the New Zealand meat industry in terms of maximising export returns. Greenlea was instrumental in establishing the SureTrim standard through the Meat Industry Association. I chaired the working group and felt that the result was basically a re-establishment of the old Meat Board inspection standard and that all companies would sign on and
fall into line. Sadly, I do not believe that this is the case. Some companies have not signed on, and others, I believe, have only paid lip service to the agreed trim standard. I know this from numerous contacts within the industry and from the many farmers who tell me that there is still a very real difference between meat companies. In my view there needs to be independent verification of not only pre scale trimming but also the tare weights in the carcass scales and the transfer of information to the kill sheet summary. A couple of other meat companies agree, and we now plan to do this and promote this as a point of difference to those that chose not to. I have raised my concerns with Sam McIvor, CEO of Beef + Lamb NZ, and I suggest that farmers should do the same! This industry needs to maximise returns for all, and Greenlea is keen to fulfil its responsibility to our farmer suppliers.
AN UPDATE ON THE CHINA CHILLED TRIAL In our last issue, we introduced the China chilled meat trial that got underway in June. Greenlea sent the first chilled beef consignment to the market, both by air and traditional sea freight. Graham Green, our Operations Manager, travelled to China with an industry delegation in October to support the trial and to give the Chinese regulators and customers confidence that New Zealand chilled product is safe and of premium quality. It is imperative that product integrity be maintained throughout the supply chain so that the product reaches end users in ideal condition. The New Zealand hosted seminar, as well as various meetings with regulators, reinforced the important relationships and New Zealand’s commitment to the highest food safety standard. At the time this newsletter went to print, Greenlea had shipped 66 tonnes of chilled beef to China which represented a 62% share. Once again, Greenlea continues to bat above our weight!
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A footprint in the sand
saves a life
With just two hours of daylight remaining, a frantic search was underway for a missing woman who did not return from a day hike. On the evening of Monday 13 November, the Greenlea Rescue Helicopter was contacted by National Park Police regarding a woman who had not returned from a day hike to Lake Surprise on Mt Ruapehu. The woman had sent a text message earlier that day saying she had lost her way, was following a river, and that her phone battery was going flat.
With no further information or contact, and with two hours of daylight remaining, there was a scramble to dispatch the Greenlea Rescue Helicopter to search the most likely areas of interest before darkness. The initial search covered approximately a 20 km square area on the western side of Mt Ruapehu. After about two hours of intensive searching, the Greenlea Rescue Helicopter set off to cover one last area of interest before departing the scene for the night.
Approximately one kilometre downstream from the footprint the rescue helicopter crew spotted the missing woman.
She was completely invisible with the exception of her white face staring up out of the darkness. With no ability to assess the terrain from the helicopter and with failing light, a LandSAR volunteer was hoisted down to assist the woman, and directed the ground based searcher to her location. The woman and her rescuers were easily able to scramble out of the river and up to the track. The local knowledge and experience of the area of all those involved in the search greatly contributed to this outcome. Despite the beautiful weather that day, the drop in temperature as night fell meant if the woman had not been found as quickly as she was, the result could have been very different.
Right on sunset, one of the ground searchers alerted the rescue helicopter that a footprint had been discovered in the sand where the Horopito to Mangaturuturu track crossed the Makotuku stream. The footprint indicated that the person was heading downstream. The rescue helicopter immediately proceeded to this location and followed the river downstream.
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