Scotland red meat industry makes £2.1 billion in 2011

Scotland's red meat industry contributed £2.1 billion (US$3.3 billion) to the country's economy in 2011, according to Quality Meat Scotland's Scottish Meat Industry Profile, a 10 percent increase over 2010 numbers.
While beef and lamb producers benefitted from stronger prices, pig farmers saw production costs rise more than their returns and processors felt increased pressure on their margins, said the report. It may be another year before increased confidence is reflected in breeding stock populations, according to Stuart Ashworth, head of Quality Meat Scotland's economic services. There was further consolidation in the pig sector in 2011 where, although prices improved over 2010, they still averaged below 2009 levels and input costs remained high. The sow herd contracted sharply and returned to its downward trend of the past decade, declining by nearly 14 percent to 32,200 head.
“In the throes of a weak economy, generally the processing sector struggled to pass on the increased cost of sourcing livestock," said Ashworth. "While strong demand for beef and pork facilitated an upwards movement in retail prices during the summer months, consumption fell back towards the end of the year as prices were perceived by many consumers to have reached prohibitive levels.
“However, on the upside, the export trade was buoyant and presented some new opportunities to achieve improved carcass balance, while input costs began to ease towards the end of the year."

EU legislation would require country of origin labeling for poultry, pig meat

New legislation on country of origin labeling for fresh poultry, pork and lamb is due to be voted on by the European Parliament in July.
Welfare charity Compassion in World Farming has welcomed the move but hopes that in the future, labeling will offer more information to help consumers identify welfare issues. The charity wants labels to detail not only place of birth but also where an animal was reared and slaughtered.
It says that detailed labeling would enable consumers to identify if animals have been transported live from one country to another, or if the animal was slaughtered without first being stunned and also if animals have been intensively reared.
The European Commission said that one year after the enforcement of the new legislation, it will examine whether country of origin labeling of meat should be extended to meat used as ingredients. One year after this, it will review whether the legislation should be extended to other types of meat. Legislation is already in place for beef, milk, milk used as an ingredients, unprocessed foods, single-ingredient products and ingredients that represent more than 50% of a food.