2024 – Page 73

Quarterly red meat production lifts as national herd enters destock phase

THE latest quarterly statistics on livestock slaughtered and meat production from the Australian Bureau of Statistics have shown that the female slaughter ratio for the Australian cattle herd has lifted to 53.1 percent, which places the industry in a destock phase.

This increase in the FSR comes alongside a 17pc lift in cattle slaughter to 2.1 million head for the June quarter, the highest seen since the 2019 drought.

MLA senior market information analyst Erin Lukey said the ABS data showed that the female slaughter ratio (FSR) had increased across the country.

The industry uses 47pc FSR as a benchmark as to whether the industry is in a restock, steady or destocking phase. A quarterly FSR of 53pc is the second consecutive quarter above this benchmark, which indicates the cattle herd has entered a destocking period.

“The ABS data has revealed lifts to FSR across all states which has lifted to its highest female turnoff since 2019, and the largest quarter on quarter lift to their FSR among other states,” Ms Lukey said.

“Thanks to four consecutive years that have allowed for rebuild and maintenance, the Australian cattle herd is high when compared to historic averages. Cow retention over this time has created a large female herd, which are now ready for turnoff.”

Higher beef production

Saleyard prices remained well above year-ago levels, as strong demand for Australian beef in the global market helps to maintain confidence as production rises.

The increase in cattle slaughter has consequently led to an elevated beef production quarter as well.

Beef production rose 14pc from the March quarter and 19pc from the June quarter last year, to 648,763 tonnes. This is the largest quarterly production total since 2015, and the fourth-highest volume on record.

Lamb trends similar

Last quarter was also a record quarter for lamb, with 177,147t produced, 6pc above the March quarter this year and 19pc higher than the same quarter last year.

“High red meat export volumes over the June quarter show that demand is growing overseas at the same time that Australian supply is rising,” Ms Lukey said.

Lamb slaughter lifted to 7.2 million head over the quarter, which is Australia’s highest lamb slaughter figure on record and the first time it has been above seven million head.

Combined sheep and lamb slaughter rose 2pc from Q1 2024 and 16pc from Q2 last year to 9.9 million head. This makes Q2 the largest quarter for sheep and lamb slaughter since 1973.

Ms Lukey said Australia’s sheep flock had changed significantly over the last fifty years.

“A move towards meat breeds, and more recently to shedding animals, has opened the door to a new way of sheepmeat production. The flock is operating in a new normal, with more lambs being grown, leading to more production,” she said.

Lamb slaughter across Australia lifted to its highest number ever with 7.2 million head processed in Q2. This was 4.2pc higher than last quarter’s record figure and 19pc higher than at the same time last year.

For the financial year, 27.5 million lambs were processed, making the 12-month period the largest on record, and 25pc above the five-year average.

Adult sheep

Sheep slaughter was down 2pc this quarter to 2.7pc, although last quarter the record was the highest since 2018. For the financial year, sheep slaughter lifted 19pc on last year to 10.2 million head, which was the highest since 2008.

Combined sheep and lamb slaughter for FY 2023-24 lifted 20pc from 2022-23 to 37.8 million head.

Source: MLA

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Lidl NL Permanently Reduces Plant-Based Prices, Adds Pea Protein to Beef Mince for Blended Product – vegconomist

Lidl Netherlands has announced a permanent reduction in the cost of plant-based meat and dairy alternatives, meaning they will be priced equally to or lower than their animal-based equivalents. The retailer says it aims to ensure price is not an obstacle to making sustainable choices.

The news comes after a ProVeg study conducted last year found that people are far more likely to choose plant-based foods when they are priced more affordably. The research showed that most people want plant-based products to be priced the same as animal foods, with similar government subsidies.

Lidl has already slashed the prices of plant-based alternatives in other European markets such as Germany, Denmark, Hungary, and Austria. Dutch chain Jumbo has made a similar move, along with various other retailers across Europe.

“Price is the main obstacle for people to choose plant-based more often. The move to make plant-based products the same price or cheaper than meat and dairy removes that obstacle,” said Martine van Haperen, Health and Nutrition expert at ProVeg Netherlands.

Influencing the protein ratio

In an attempt to reduce its carbon footprint, Lidl has also announced a new product launch that may prove controversial — blended mince. The product contains 60% beef and 40% pea protein, claiming to generate 37.5% less CO2 than regular mince while being 33% cheaper. The retailer says it is the first in the Netherlands to introduce this type of product.

Lidl has likely been inspired to launch the blended mince after becoming one of 11 Dutch supermarket chains pledging to make 60% of the proteins they sell plant-based by 2030. Currently, just 40% of proteins sold at Dutch retailers are plant-based, and recent figures indicate that supermarkets may not be doing enough to discourage meat consumption.

Lidl previously announced plans to replace more animal proteins with plant-based alternatives in 2023. Opinions are often divided regarding blended meat products, but ProVeg has praised the new launch, arguing that it will appeal to meat eaters who may not be prepared to give up meat entirely.

“Not everyone wants to eat meat substitutes or legumes,” said van Haperen. “By introducing a hybrid product, simply on the meat shelf, [Lidl] really appeals to the carnivore. They don’t even have to change their consumption patterns. This is a valuable addition that really gives Lidl the opportunity to influence the protein ratio.”

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Chef Chumpol Janprai Partners with Chef Nutcha Phanthoupheng

Chumpol Janprai (left) and Nutcha Phanthoupheng

RICHMOND, B.C. — Two time Michelin-starred chef Chumpol Janprai of Bangkok’s R-Haan restaurant is joining forces with his former prodigy, award-winning chef Nutcha Phanthoupheng of Richmond, B.C.’s Baan Lao, to deliver an evening of Royal Thai mastery.

This dinner collaboration will feature a tasting menu showcasing each chef’s signature styles and emphasizing their commitment to both sustainability and sourcing authentic Thai and local ingredients. The first North American event will take place from September 6 to 8 at Baan Lao.

The seven course tasting menu will be accompanied by wine pairings, presented by North America’s top master sommelier, Pier-Alexis Souliere. Alternatively, a Gong Fu Cha tea pairing option in available, curated and served by certified TAC tea sommelier Lena Pan.

“When I decided to pursue a career as a chef, I was fortunate enough to have private cooking courses with chef Chumpol, the Iron Chef of Thailand and the first Thai two-starred Michelin chef in the world,” says Phanthoupheng. “It was an extraordinary experience and I’m honoured and humbled to have him as a mentor. He continues to help guide me as I create new dishes for Baan Lao.”

What sets chefs Janprai and Phanthoupheng apart in the culinary world is their commitment to Royal Thai cuisine, the apex of Thailand’s epicurean experience. Royal Thai cuisine is prepped and prepared to meet exacting standards that have been established over centuries for meals served to the Thai royal family. From the pristine ingredients and their careful handling to the exquisite flavour balance and presentation of dishes, Royal Thai cuisine elevates the Thai dining experience to the highest standards that only a few restaurants even attempt to meet. Both chefs are excited to showcase the finest in Royal Thai cuisine and for chef Phanthoupheng, this specific cuisine has become a core part of her mission to change the way Canadians view Thai food. She aims to show Canadians that there are many types of Thai cuisine, among them regional and royal.

For this collaboration, chef Janprai will create unique and rare dishes that have never been seen in Canadian Thai cuisine before. The event will feature local water buffalo, Sumas Mountain beef tenderloin, fresh lobster and Wagyu beef.

Tickets can be purchased here

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Aldi hits free-range egg commitment more than a year early

ALDI has hit its commitment to sell 100% cage-free eggs more than a year ahead of schedule.

Britain’s fourth-largest supermarket has been working with its suppliers to move to higher hen welfare in recent years, with all its UK stores now only selling cage-free eggs.

The retailer made the announcement shortly after Kantar data revealed it sells more British free-range eggs than any other UK supermarket.

Julie Ashfield, managing director of buying at Aldi, said: “Improving animal welfare is incredibly important to us at Aldi, and by working with our suppliers we have been able to hit our 100% cage-free target more than a year early.

“Our British suppliers are at the heart of our business and without them Aldi wouldn’t be where it is today and we are proud to work with so many UK egg farmers.”

Aldi said it had invested more than £50m into UK egg farming and producers over the past two years.

The retailer added it ensures it implements long-term contracts for its egg suppliers, “providing them with certainty and security for them to continue to invest and grow their businesses”.

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How Nimbus is defying the slow decline of ghost kitchens

While ghost kitchens were on the rise during the peak of the pandemic, Nimbus — a New York City-based, female-founded collaborative kitchen company — looked very different from its colleagues in the space.

Whereas most ghost kitchens could not be visited physically (or even readily identified on a delivery app), Nimbus operated as much as a community and events space as a delivery kitchen. Many ghost kitchen companies also launched their own virtual brands in addition to partnering with established restaurants, but Nimbus cofounder and CEO Camilla Opperman Morse decided to forego being an operator, and instead focus on perfecting the commissary kitchen in a “WeWork” type of environment.

Now, five years after its launch, Nimbus has four New York City locations (three in Manhattan and one in Brooklyn), and Opperman Morse is taking the company to a new city for the first time. Nimbus will soon open in the former Le Cordon Bleu space in Chicago, and the goal is to eventually grow to the “anti-ghost kitchen” company to all major metropolitan areas across the United States.

“We are providing affordable, flexible commercial kitchen space to food businesses to run their off-premises productions in the hopes of lowering the barriers to entry of… building out their own space,” Opperman Morse said. “It’s really a way for brands to scale and launch in a capital efficient and low-risk way, which has been core to our identity since 2019.”

Even though the Nimbus spaces are ideal for startups or smaller businesses that want to test the waters in a new market, the company gets a wide variety of clientele, “from Noma to Little Caesar’s,” Opperman Morse said. Brands also have the flexibility of choosing the type of rental they want, from four hours (if they want to run a special event), to four years (if they want to build a permanent off-premises home), and everything in between.

Kitchen rentals at Nimbus come with access to facilities, equipment maintenance, food safety monitoring, basic equipment, and Wifi, to name some of the main assets. Operator partners also have access to front of house space, where Opperman Morse said they ran 265 events last year.

The Nimbus team chose Chicago as the next phase of expansion because it’s well-known as a food city with a “strict regulatory environment and high cost of real estate,” which might be prohibitive to businesses just starting out.

“There are a number of cities around the country where it’s much easier to open a kitchen or it’s much cheaper to get your own space,” Opperman Morse said. “So, we would not necessarily be solving as much of a problem in those markets.”

Over the past five years, she has watched as other ghost kitchen, virtual restaurant and other adjacent businesses have failed or been acquired by other companies. Opperman Morse said that they stand out by avoiding some of the pitfalls of these companies—namely being a tech company first or trying to be a jack of all trades within in the off-premises business.

Opperman Morse said that this is the major reason why Nimbus has not started its own concepts, nor has the company tried to be a traditional incubator with financial support for startups. Instead, the Nimbus team has carved out its own niche for brands that are looking to rent out a space with resources to become more than just a typical dark kitchen.

“Ghost kitchens have gotten a lot of bad press, and I think rightfully so,” she said. “Many of these vertically integrated kitchens tried to grow too quickly and were trying to do too many things at once: running a kitchen, developing tech products, and launching virtual brands…. We’ve always emphasized the in-person hospitality element of our business, and… I think that in-person interaction and bringing hospitality back into the equation is key.”

Over the next five years, Opperman Morse hopes to grow Nimbus to 50 locations in new cities, with a focus on expanding methodically without burning out.

Contact Joanna Fantozzi at [email protected]

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Wine 101: Italy Part V: The Beginnings of a Wine Region

In the early 14th century, Italians were the predominant merchants in Europe. Their vineyard plots were often sharecropped with olive trees, grain fields, and the like, giving them a competitive advantage when it came to selling goods. However, the landscape began to shift sometime around the 1340s.

Following several years of unusually low yields on agricultural products, two prominent banking families in Florence went bankrupt. To make matters worse, the Black Death arrived shortly thereafter, cutting Florence’s population in half. But there was a bright spot on the wine front: As demand for grain plummeted following the population decrease, more land in the Chianti hills opened for wine production.

Today on “Wine 101,” Keith discusses how the disastrous events of the 14th century helped winemakers refine their production techniques and eventually allowed Chianti to establish itself as a fine-wine region.

Listen Online

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Follow Keith on Instagram @VinePairKeith. Rate and review this podcast wherever you get your podcasts. It really helps get the word out there.

“Wine 101” was produced, recorded, and edited by yours truly, Keith Beavers, at the VinePair headquarters in New York City. I want to give a big old shout-out to co-founders Adam Teeter and Josh Malin for creating VinePair. Big shout-out to Danielle Grinberg, the art director of VinePair, for creating the most awesome logo for this podcast. Also, Darby Cicci for the theme song. And I want to thank the entire VinePair staff for helping me learn something new every day. See you next week.

*Image retrieved from Giambattista via stock.adobe.com

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Dairy farmers have the chance to win an ADF milking system at UK Dairy Day

Dairy farmer competition alert – enter right now online or September 11 at UK Dairy Day

19 August 2024

2 minute read

ADF Milking, the market leader in automated dipping and flushing technology, is thrilled to announce an exciting competition which will be concluding at year’s UK Dairy Day. One lucky dairy farmer has the chance to win a brand new ADF Automatic Dipping & Flushing System, designed to revolutionise their milking routine.

Enter to win a state-of-the-art milking system

Farmers can enter the competition online now at www.adfmilking.com/adf-competition-dairy-day/ or by visiting the ADF Milking stand at UK Dairy Day and submitting a physical entry form. Submissions close at 3:00pm on Wednesday 11th September 2024 and the winner will be announced exclusively at UK Dairy Day on the ADF Milking stand H117, Hall 1 at 4:00pm.

Experience the benefits of automatic dipping & flushing

The award-winning ADF System automatically performs both dipping and flushing, providing numerous benefits for dairy farmers and their cows:

Improved Cow Health: Protects teats from harmful bacteria and reduces mastitis cases.
Enhanced Milk Quality: Prevents cross-contamination and improves somatic cell count.
ncreased Efficiency: Automates milking routines, saving labour costs and time.
Boosted Productivity: Faster milking times and smoother workflows.
Improved Cow Longevity: Reduces stress and promotes better udder health.

Finding the right system for every farm

ADF Milking offers a range of Automatic Dipping & Flushing Systems to suit different needs, depending on the size and scale of the dairy operation:

ADF Essential: Ideal for smaller parlours, delivering core functionalities in a streamlined design.
ADF Professional: The market-leading system for consistent and reliable operation.
ADF Ultimate: The premium flagship system featuring the latest InVent technology for optimal milking comfort.

Innovative InVent technology

ADF goes beyond conventional milking with their latest technology – InVent. A unique system that individually regulates vacuum levels for each teat on each cow. This innovative approach minimises teat damage and congestion, leading to:

Faster Milk Let-Down: Reduces stress for cows resulting in faster milking times.
Calmer Cows: Promotes a more relaxed milking experience.

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Consumers’ inflation concerns stabilize | MEAT+POULTRY

ARLINGTON, VA. — Consumer grocery trends continue to evolve as shoppers increasingly focus on value driven propositions and convenient meal solutions, according to new data from FMI – The Food Industry Association.

The report, “US Grocery Shopper Trends: Finding Value,” utilized responses from over 2,000 primary shoppers in the United States to determine consumer behaviors and sentiments amid inflationary challenges. While 91% of shoppers are concerned with rising prices and have changed their shopping habits, only 32% are buying fewer items, and even less are cutting back on key food categories like organic (15%) and fresh products (14%), explained Leslie G. Sarasin, president and chief executive officer of FMI.

“FMI’s national survey found that grocery shoppers’ concerns about inflation have stabilized in recent months, illustrating how resilient consumers are when it comes to food shopping,” Sarasin said. “To manage higher prices, shoppers are increasingly prioritizing getting good value, which involves focusing more on quality and optimizing purchases for personal enjoyment, convenience and waste-reduction at home.”

Quick meal options, particularly those preparable in under half an hour, have grown significantly in popularity over the last four years. FMI found that 32% of shoppers spend less than 30 minutes preparing meals at home, up from 18% in 2020, and 75% spend less than an hour preparing their meals, an increase from 63% in 2020. The findings align with an earlier report from FMI, which identified that nearly 60% of consumers’ midday meals and 65% of morning meals are prepared in less than five minutes.

“In recent years, food retailers have innovated around solutions that range from meal kits and partially prepared options to ready-to-eat meals,” FMI said. “There is a tension, however, between shoppers’ desire for more efficient and enjoyable ways to prepare and cook meals and their desire to retain control and engagement in the process.

“Shoppers feel the best way retailers can support them is by providing better value food options … and more variety in easy-to-prepare foods … rather than weekly meal plans or simply more partially prepared options.”

In addition to convenience, consumers’ emphasis on health claims was another trend noted in the report. Claims that shoppers seek out the most frequently related to avoiding negatives (62%), such as low sugar, low sodium or low fat, minimal processing (47%), good sources of fiber (31%) and ethical practices (24%).

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Aldi urges A-level students to take warehousing and driving apprenticeships

Atherstone, UK: Discount retailer Aldi has revealed it is looking to recruit 250 new apprentices between now and the end of the year in warehousing and HGV driving, as well as in stores.

Successful applicants on the programme will have the chance to gain industry-recognised qualifications while they earn and will also be eligible for a number of additional benefits, such as paid breaks.

Kelly Stokes, recruitment director at Aldi UK, said: “With thousands of students across the country opening their results, we’d encourage everyone to check out the wide range of roles we have on offer.

“Whether you know exactly what you want to do next, or you have no idea where to start, we’re on the lookout for talented young people to join our amazing teams across the UK.

“As we continue to open stores in new areas, it’s a really exciting time to join us on our mission to become the nation’s favourite place to shop and work.”

The supermarket is opening an average of one new store a week between now and Christmas, with new stores in Plymouth, Leeds and London among the next to open in the coming weeks.

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industry leaders will outline future trends

1-2 October 2024

The CEA Summit East announces that the keynote address, “Leadership Insights: Charting the Future Landscape of Controlled Environment Agriculture,” will take place on Wednesday, October 2, 2024 at 9 AM at the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research (IALR) Conference Center in Danville, Virginia.

This session is one of two featured keynote addresses joining the full conference line-up for the October 1-2, 2024 edition, providing attendees with expert insights and future-thinking discussions. This keynote will bring together leading executives in the CEA industry to explore predictions, strategies, and perspectives on the emerging trends shaping the future of controlled environment agriculture.

The panel will feature Carl Gupton, CEO of Greenswell Growers; John McMahon, Co-Founder & COO of Better Future Farms; and Molly Montgomery, Acting CEO & Executive Chair of AeroFarms. Moderation will be by Emily Gee, a member of the Board of Directors for the CEA Alliance and Director of Marketing at AeroFarms.

For more information and to enter for the event:
Indoor Ag-Con
www.indoor.ag

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