The publication of the product specification for PGI status has left many questions around how the protected status for “Irish Grass Fed Beef” will work and if will it deliver increased returns for farmers. Unfortunately, many of the farmers I have spoken to over the last few days don’t believe that the PGI application or the introduction of a grass-fed standard will deliver increased returns. There is still huge confusion around what the PGI is and what the Bord Bia grass-fed standard is. Here, we take a look at both and what they mean for farmers
What is PGI?
Achieving PGI status would mean the name “Irish Grass Fed Beef” would achieve protected status and would differentiate Irish grass-fed beef from other competitors’ products and other Irish beef products. In theory, this could command a price premium in the future if the brand is successful. The PGI application only includes cattle that derive at least 90% of their feed intake from grass.
Cattle must be born, raised, finished, slaughtered, chilled and quartered within the Republic of Ireland to be eligible for the PGI
This is made up primarily of grazed grass and winter feeding of silage or hay. Animals must spend a minimum of 220 days per year throughout their lifetime grazing pasture. For example, it means turnout on 27 March and housing on 1 November. There is some leniency built into this rule, with a 40-day reduction to cater for farms in high-rainfall areas. Cattle must be born, raised, finished, slaughtered, chilled and quartered within the Republic of Ireland to be eligible for the PGI. Only certain animals and grades will be legible, including:
Steers and heifers aged up to 36 months, with conformation better than O- and fat score between 2+ and 4+.Beef cows up to 120 months, with conformation better than O+ and fat score between 2+ and 5.Bord Bia will verify that animals meet the requirements of the scheme via the Bord Bia sustainable beef and lamb quality assurance scheme (SBLAS). At factories, cattle must be penned according to the groups they were transported in and rest for at least two hours pre-slaughter. It also states that transport times should be minimised. At the processor, all PGI grass-fed beef must be kept separate from other beef.
High-pH carcases will be identified and excluded from the standard
Meat and fat colour will be monitored by a quality control inspector in the factory prior to deboning, to ensure that the animal complies with the required colour criteria – a red cherry colour for meat and a higher degree of creaminess or yellowness in the fat. High-pH carcases will be identified and excluded from the standard.
The PGI application needs to be very descriptive in what it is looking to protect, hence the tighter specifications compared to the grass-fed standard.
What is the Bord Bia grass-fed standard?
The Bord Bia grass-fed standard was developed by Bord Bia in response to the demands in the market. Purchasers are increasingly looking for grass-fed products and this standard will verify beef products as grass-fed. It has similar criteria to the PGI standard, however bulls are eligible for the grass-fed standard logo if they meet the eligibility criteria, along with cows, heifers and steers. All beef produced under this standard will carry the Bord Bia grass-fed logo. It includes the 220 days at grass and 90% of diet grass must be forage-based.
Processors will verify whether animals presented for slaughter are eligible for the grass-fed logo
The animal must come from farms where data relating to feed consumption and grazing season is available in the SBLAS quality assurance database. The first nine months of the animal’s life are excluded for this purpose. Processors will verify whether animals presented for slaughter are eligible for the grass-fed logo by inputting the tag number of the animal into the Teagasc-developed “grass-fed quantification model” prior to slaughter.
This programme will use the data obtained via the SBLAS audit to verify animal eligibility. Processors are required to comply with the terms and conditions of the standard and must apply for approval via the Bord Bia Meat Quality Assurance Scheme.
In principle, this is a good idea. The beef supply chain is broken and we must look at ways we can give our product premium status. Is this the way to do it? Anything that helps differentiate Irish beef in the marketplace and attract a premium is a positive.
Bord Bia research points to a premium in the marketplace for grass-fed products and that’s the big question – where is the money? If we look at other countries like Italy with Parma ham and Italian cheeses, or Scotland with Scotch beef, there are varying levels of success and it all depends on how it sits with the consumer.
These have PGI status and command a premium of varying size in the marketplace. Similarly, there are PGI brands like Welsh beef and lamb and southwest beef in England where there appears little, if any, PGI premium.
There is a degree of nervousness among farmers as to whether processors will use this as a baseline to discount off, rather than add a premium to. A quick Twitter poll on Tuesday asking whether the standards will deliver increased returns to farmers saw 86% of respondents saying they believe it won’t deliver increased returns, with 14% expecting it will.
We know these things take time
Non-scientific I know, but still a sign of the confidence that exists in the industry to deliver potential increased returns.
We know these things take time, and if we look at Aberdeen Angus or Hereford premiums, it took years to build the brand – it will more than likely be the same story here. And so, back to my first question – will PGI status and grass-fed beef deliver for Irish farmers? Looking at the hard facts, you would have to question how much it will deliver. Reading through both documents, you could be forgiven for thinking this is a processor/retailer-driven document.
This has the potential to provide a branding bonanza for factories, retailers and food service providers. There will be photos of Irish grass-fed cattle pinned up from Hackballscross to Hanover.
The introduction of the new standards adds a further hoop to jump through for our beef farmers
For years now, farmers have called for more transparency in the industry. The introduction of the new standards adds a further hoop to jump through for our beef farmers.
The question remains as to whether farmers can trust factories to pass on the premium attained from grass-fed products. The percentage of this premium that is passed back to farmers will determine its success.
The publication of the product specification for PGI status has left many questions around how the protected status for “Irish Grass Fed Beef” will work and if will it deliver increased returns for farmers. Unfortunately, many of the farmers I have spoken to over the last few days don’t believe that the PGI application or the introduction of a grass-fed standard will deliver increased returns. There is still huge confusion around what the PGI is and what the Bord Bia grass-fed standard is. Here, we take a look at both and what they mean for farmers
What is PGI?
Achieving PGI status would mean the name “Irish Grass Fed Beef” would achieve protected status and would differentiate Irish grass-fed beef from other competitors’ products and other Irish beef products. In theory, this could command a price premium in the future if the brand is successful. The PGI application only includes cattle that derive at least 90% of their feed intake from grass.
Cattle must be born, raised, finished, slaughtered, chilled and quartered within the Republic of Ireland to be eligible for the PGI
This is made up primarily of grazed grass and winter feeding of silage or hay. Animals must spend a minimum of 220 days per year throughout their lifetime grazing pasture. For example, it means turnout on 27 March and housing on 1 November. There is some leniency built into this rule, with a 40-day reduction to cater for farms in high-rainfall areas. Cattle must be born, raised, finished, slaughtered, chilled and quartered within the Republic of Ireland to be eligible for the PGI. Only certain animals and grades will be legible, including:
Steers and heifers aged up to 36 months, with conformation better than O- and fat score between 2+ and 4+.Beef cows up to 120 months, with conformation better than O+ and fat score between 2+ and 5.Bord Bia will verify that animals meet the requirements of the scheme via the Bord Bia sustainable beef and lamb quality assurance scheme (SBLAS). At factories, cattle must be penned according to the groups they were transported in and rest for at least two hours pre-slaughter. It also states that transport times should be minimised. At the processor, all PGI grass-fed beef must be kept separate from other beef.
High-pH carcases will be identified and excluded from the standard
Meat and fat colour will be monitored by a quality control inspector in the factory prior to deboning, to ensure that the animal complies with the required colour criteria – a red cherry colour for meat and a higher degree of creaminess or yellowness in the fat. High-pH carcases will be identified and excluded from the standard.
The PGI application needs to be very descriptive in what it is looking to protect, hence the tighter specifications compared to the grass-fed standard.
What is the Bord Bia grass-fed standard?
The Bord Bia grass-fed standard was developed by Bord Bia in response to the demands in the market. Purchasers are increasingly looking for grass-fed products and this standard will verify beef products as grass-fed. It has similar criteria to the PGI standard, however bulls are eligible for the grass-fed standard logo if they meet the eligibility criteria, along with cows, heifers and steers. All beef produced under this standard will carry the Bord Bia grass-fed logo. It includes the 220 days at grass and 90% of diet grass must be forage-based.
Processors will verify whether animals presented for slaughter are eligible for the grass-fed logo
The animal must come from farms where data relating to feed consumption and grazing season is available in the SBLAS quality assurance database. The first nine months of the animal’s life are excluded for this purpose. Processors will verify whether animals presented for slaughter are eligible for the grass-fed logo by inputting the tag number of the animal into the Teagasc-developed “grass-fed quantification model” prior to slaughter.
This programme will use the data obtained via the SBLAS audit to verify animal eligibility. Processors are required to comply with the terms and conditions of the standard and must apply for approval via the Bord Bia Meat Quality Assurance Scheme.
In principle, this is a good idea. The beef supply chain is broken and we must look at ways we can give our product premium status. Is this the way to do it? Anything that helps differentiate Irish beef in the marketplace and attract a premium is a positive.
Bord Bia research points to a premium in the marketplace for grass-fed products and that’s the big question – where is the money? If we look at other countries like Italy with Parma ham and Italian cheeses, or Scotland with Scotch beef, there are varying levels of success and it all depends on how it sits with the consumer.
These have PGI status and command a premium of varying size in the marketplace. Similarly, there are PGI brands like Welsh beef and lamb and southwest beef in England where there appears little, if any, PGI premium.
There is a degree of nervousness among farmers as to whether processors will use this as a baseline to discount off, rather than add a premium to. A quick Twitter poll on Tuesday asking whether the standards will deliver increased returns to farmers saw 86% of respondents saying they believe it won’t deliver increased returns, with 14% expecting it will.
We know these things take time
Non-scientific I know, but still a sign of the confidence that exists in the industry to deliver potential increased returns.
We know these things take time, and if we look at Aberdeen Angus or Hereford premiums, it took years to build the brand – it will more than likely be the same story here. And so, back to my first question – will PGI status and grass-fed beef deliver for Irish farmers? Looking at the hard facts, you would have to question how much it will deliver. Reading through both documents, you could be forgiven for thinking this is a processor/retailer-driven document.
This has the potential to provide a branding bonanza for factories, retailers and food service providers. There will be photos of Irish grass-fed cattle pinned up from Hackballscross to Hanover.
The introduction of the new standards adds a further hoop to jump through for our beef farmers
For years now, farmers have called for more transparency in the industry. The introduction of the new standards adds a further hoop to jump through for our beef farmers.
The question remains as to whether farmers can trust factories to pass on the premium attained from grass-fed products. The percentage of this premium that is passed back to farmers will determine its success.
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