Brussels, 22/04/2016 (Agence Europe) - Copa-Cogeca launched a two-year campaign in Brussels on Thursday 21 April to “underline the multiple benefits of the EU livestock sector and meat for growth and jobs, vibrant rural areas, a balanced diet” and to show the high production standards EU farmers, hard hit by the current crisis, meet.
Speaking at the launch, President Martin Merrild said: “The nutritious benefits of eating beef, veal, pork, lamb, poultry & eggs, goatmeat and rabbit are all too clear, providing consumers with a good source of protein in their diet”.
Livestock farming is often the only source of employment in rural areas, but agriculture is currently in the midst of a crisis. Commodity prices are at an all-time low and input costs are rising. Merrild highlighted concerns over the effects of a possible free-trade deal between the EU and the Mercosur countries. Such a deal would be likely to “hit the EU agriculture sector, especially beef, hard. Yet imports from these countries do not meet the EU's high environmental, safety and welfare standards”, he said.
Cogeca Vice-President Thomas Memmert spoke of the pressure exerted by a handful of retailers and underlined the need to combat unfair practices in the food chain to enable farmers to getter return for their produce.
The beef sector, for example, maintains permanent grassland which makes to possible to maintain a high level of biodiversity, Copa-Cogeca state. In the pork sector, voluntary initiatives have been launched to ensure even higher animal welfare standards.
Easy-to-cook recipes were also presented by top chefs. Spanish Iberian ham, which comes from pigs reared in extensive conditions and fed on a special diet, was offered by Interporc. AHDB, together with the NFU and IFA, presented the Tasty Easy Fun Lamb campaign presenting new easy-to-cook lamb recipes. Great steaks from specialist beef herds were provided by the French national beef association and Interbev. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)