• Change your delivery address • National Pig Association • National Pig Association Trade Directory • Diary Dates
European Pig Producers Congress 2008
How to live with the world’s
most sophisticated retailers
European Pig Producers Congress 2008 is at Norwich on June 5-8. This year's host is National Pig Association, which has chosen for its theme "How to live with the world's most sophisticated retailers".
This will be a once-in-a-lifetime event. In addition to some excellent papers there will be a full social diary for delegates. All pig industry people are urged to attend, to forge links with our opposite numbers in Germany, Holland, Denmark, France etc.
Both members and non-members may attend, but it costs more for non-members.
Securing hotel rooms is organiser Ian Campbell's big issue at present, so if you are proposing to attend please ring him immediately.
Ring 01359 259452
or 07771 923354 NOW!
Go on, interrupt Campbell's weekend. He won't mind.
For prices and registration details go here. For further details about the timetable, go here.
Key papers will be as follows:
• Structure of pig production in Great Britain by Mick Sloyan
• Structure of supply chain by Richard Lowe
• The retailer - Tesco explains what drives its business and what it looks for from its supply chain.
• The processor - meeting retailer expectations as a strong supplier or as a partner in the chain by Tulip International and Tonnies.
• The producer - an equal partner in the supply chain?
The event is based at the Hotel Ramada in Norwich.
Coach to Pig Fair — deadline extended
A 35-seater coach has been booked by South Anglia Catchment Sensitive Farming team for British Pig and Poultry Fair. It will leave Bury St. Edmunds at 8am on Wednesday 14 May with a pick-up at Newmarket at 8.25am. If you are interested call Natasha Jones, 01284 717598, by 5pm Friday May 2.
25 April
Half the herd applies for PCV2 vouchers
Nearly half the English pig herd will soon be vaccinating against PCV2, which should create an increase in production of between a half and one pig per sow per year.
This would mean 180,000 to 360,000 more slaughter pigs a year, or about an extra two weeks' supply of fresh British pork.
So far there have been 274 applications for BPEX-subsidised PCV2 vouchers, representing 177,631 sows.
Traffic Lights
A rather mixed day on the trading floor and although the DAPP continues to improve closing at 118.05p, some spot buyers seemed reluctant to follow suit, although as the day went by some slightly firmer bids appeared out of the woodwork. Commentary.
Sunday May 4 is pig industry texting day
Get your texting fingers ready, or — as this is the aged pig industry — ask your grandchildren to get theirs ready.
Every radio station in the country has been sent a copy of Stand by Your Ham and the NPA-BPEX campaign for a better pig price wants as many people as possible to request the song.
Here's the plan - send a text message to your local radio station asking it to play the song on Sunday May 4, because if producers don’t get a fair price soon the traditional British Sunday pork roast will become a thing of the past.
Above: Phillippa Brady (centre) who is NPA's young texting campaign adviser. Texting numbers will be published here when available.
School Farm and Country Fair
By Ian Campbell
The annual School Farm and Country Fair at Suffolk Showground was a fantastic event - again.
3,500 primary school children attended the Suffolk Showground in an event that shows the farming fraternity off to its very best with farmers and allied trades coming together to give of their time and money in order to educate children about the value of food production in this county.
The NPA did their bit with those two shapely masterchefs, Jimmy Butler and Rod Tuck turning Terry Beales’ sausages created from his own recipe into tasty nibbles for the children.
Ladies in Pigs, as ever, supported their men with a Rolls Royce back up service and Jean Turnbull made sure the messages on pork and its recipes got into as many school bags as possible.
I remain impressed that Pauline Butler and Margaret Tuck retain their enthusiasm for this event – perhaps they just need to keep a watching brief on the ‘likely lads’ in case they branch out into a rendition of ‘Stand by your Sausage’ and get themselves arrested.
Everyone is making money out of pigs — except pig producers
By Digby Scott
Are pig producers due a Darwin Award this year. Or processors?
The Darwin Awards celebrate the self-culling activities of those at the shallow end of the gene pool.
So who are the most fitting recipients from the pig chain?
Retailers for failing to ake a lead in stabilising the market? Government for its unwavering anti-food policies? Processors for lining their pockets regardless of the consequences? Or producers, for letting it happen?
Let's start by looking at the sort of behaviour considered worthy of a Darwin Award last year.
• When attempting to steal a large water tank, three thieves started by cutting away the legs from under the tank. It took some time to identify their flattened bodies.
• A throat ailment prevented a man from imbibing alcohol, so he elected to receive two bottles of sherry via enema. The alcohol in his rectal cavity continued to be absorbed even after he had passed out and the next morning he was dead.
Processors and the Darwin Awards
I'm guessing this man (right) earns more than most of the people who provide the raw material for Tulip's wealth. The Danish-owned company is seen by producers as being increasingly unhelpful to the British pig industry... renegotiating contracts, wanting to pull out of DAPP, rolling pigs, and killing off Linkpork. So what do you think, is Carsten Jakobsen a candidate?
• Danish Crown, which owns Tulip, made a £200m operating profit last year.
• Tulip Ltd made a proft of £18m in 2005-06, on a turnover of £952m.
• Bowes has grown its profits from £809,000 in 2004 to £4.7m in 2007.
• Cranswick's profit before tax was up 12 percent last year to £32.4m and the company has just reported strong fourth-quarter results for its 2008 financial year.
Most producers understand the necessity for a strong processing sector. But have these companies attempted to introduce mechanisms that allow their managers to secure supplies going forward? If not, are they all candidates for Darwin?
Government and the Darwin Awards
For the past decade the United Kingdom government has been hostile to food production. The performance of Defra ministers in agriculture council meetings at Brussels demonstrates government's desire to divert funding from food production, whilst at home, Defra (and its agencies) take every opportunity to transfer costs to food production.
(This might be acceptable if the money saved stopped the closure of accident and emergency departments and gave us police forces where answering 999 calls is not optional.)
Increasingly experts are stressing the importance of food security, but there are few signs that Benn, Brown and Darling are listening. As global food supplies look ever more precarious, is the United Kingdom government a worthy candidate for a Darwin Award?
Retailers and the Darwin Awards
Nobody said it would be easy for large retailers to ensure fair play through the pigmeat supply chain. But as the most powerful link in the chain they have a responsibility to at least give it their best shot.
So are the big four retailers worthy candidates? Or do they escape the awards ceremony because they have calculated that there will still be enough continental pigmeat to keep their shelves full, and if that dries up there is a global supply that could soon be breaching Europe's 40p-a-kilo tariff wall?
Primary producers and the Darwin Awards
This is not the place to trot out the "farmers must cooperate more" mantra beloved of comfortably-salaried commentators: cooperation isn't doing Danish producers much good. But formal cooperation is not the same as informally working in unison. British pigmeat is valued by consumers and is going to be in short supply. If producers fail to turn this to their advantage, by choosing their processors carefully, are they worthy of a Darwin Award?
Footnote I have been taken to task for failing to suggest rampian for a Darwin Award. I omitted Grampian because unlike Tulip, Bowes and Cranswick it has less room to manouvre as it works to clinch the Vion deal. But my correspondent claims that Grampian has done more than most to finish the Scottish and Northern Ireland pig herds. Well the evidence is there for all to see, so for those who want to nominate Grampian...
What's in a name?
Tulip boss Carsten Jakobsen (63), of Stratford upon Avon, is a director of over 40 companies, one of which is called "Fancy A Quickie Ltd". Disappointingly, it's never traded.
Danish Crown in Sweden
A slaughterhouse owned by Danish Crown KLS Livsmedel is reported to be attempting to persuade Swedish farmers to desert the Swedish-owned slaughterhouse Scan in return for higher pig prices. Danish Crown’s tactic is to invest now, in order to make money later.
Rotech and Schippers announce new company
• Rotech stand 92 • Schippers stand 94
As a result of increased business—due to business with the nation’s commercial studs, and the recent acquisition of the assets of Medata Systems Ltd—Rotech Livestock Equipment Ltd has decided to concentrate on its core business of AI.
This will enable it to offer improved customer service, to devote more resources to product innovation, and to improve its range of products, says the company.
As a result of the decision to major on AI, it has been agreed to split the business between the two brands Rotech and Schippers. Rotech will handle AI equipment and will continue to manufacture Doppler pregnancy detectors and sell Schippers scanners.
A new company, Schippers (UK) Ltd, has been formed to work closely with Rotech in developing the United Kingdom market for Schippers general livestock farming equipment, across all species. General manager will be Mr Hans Jensema.
‘Both companies are committed to the British market and will work together to support the British livestock farming industry, with an emphasis on pig breeding,’ said Richard Openshaw and Mark Schippers, in a joint statement.
Rotech Livestock Equipment Ltd—01243 787115. Schippers (UK) Ltd—01733-370970.
Slaughterings down
There was a marked decline in estimated pig slaughterings in the week ended April 12, to 153,000 head, the lowest weekly kill so far this year except for in the bank holiday weeks.
Danes losing £37 on every pig, claim
Since the beginning of this year crisis-hit Danish pig farmers have lost £224m, the largest loss ever recorded by the industry. Producers are reported to be losing an average £37 on every pig they send to slaughter. But they remain convinced they will be back in profit before the end of the year. Danish Meat Association reports that producers will lose around £14 a pig on average this year.
McDonalds pays more
McDonald’s now pays five percent more for the pork it uses and this increase will be passed directly to the British farmers that supply it, promises the company. "There is little doubt that, at current prices, pig farmers cannot make a return on their animals," said a spokesman.
Will pork be Britain's best dish for two years running?
As we reported on this page at the time, John Kenny, of Happy Hogs, at Aylsham, Norfolk, did wonders for the popularity of belly pork when his recipe won the accolade of “Britain’s Best Dish” on television.
Researchers are now out and about for “Britain’s Best Dish 2008” and NPA wants to make sure pork wins again — particularly important as prices rise in the shops.
The programme is a nationwide contest to find Britain’s best starter, main course and pudding.
“We are looking for ordinary people (ie. people who aren’t head chefs with years of experience behind them) to cook their signature dishes and enter them into the mix,” says the programme’s Lucy Wedlock.
The overall winner will receive a £10,000 cash prize. The first part of the show involves auditions around the country in which the amateur chefs face a panel of judges. Last year’s judges were John Burton Race, Jilly Goolden and Ed Baines.
“The programme makers tell me that if we can assemble our Stand by Your Ham singers at one of the venue they are more or less guaranteed to get air-time,” said NPA general manager Barney Kay.
Auditions NEWCASTLE Saturday 26th April, Newcastle United FC, St James’ Park; NORWICH Saturday 3rd May, EPIC TV, 112-114 Magdalen Street, NR3 1JD; EDINBURGH Sunday 18th May, The Assembly Rooms, 54 George, Street, EH2 2LR; LONDON Saturday 10th May & 7th June, Glaziers Hall, 9 Montague Close, London Bridge, SE1 9DD; BRISTOL Saturday 24th May, Watershed, 1 Canon’s Rd, Harbourside; LIVERPOOL Saturday 31st May, St George’s Hall, William Brown Street, L1 1JJ.
Trainee-of-the-Year
Candidates who enter this year's Pfizer Trainee of the Year Award will be eligible for an extra PIPR point. More about the award, including an entry form, here.
Capital grants for composting and anaerobic digestion
New grant funding is available to help those wanting to develop composting, aerobic or anaerobic digestion plants to treat organic food waste. The Waste and Resources Action Programme’s Organics Capital Grant Programme VI can fund up to 30 percent of capital set-up costs, including land purchase, installing new infrastructure and buying individual pieces of equipment. Waste and Resources Action Programme website.
Guess the Traffic Lights base by Pig Fair
There were hundreds of entries in the Pig World/BPEX guess-the-spot for Pig Fair competition. Most-guessed figure was 129p. The range of guesses spanned 108p to 145p. Only one figure received no takers — 137p. The competition has been a bit of fun — if that word can be used in connection with the pig industry at present — but has serious intent: to help the whole chain focus on the simple fact that if pig-keepers do not see a sustained 145p, there will be no British pork in the shops in 12 months time.
Cheap weaners to Britain
Dutch producers have been told there will soon be opportunities for them to export weaners to Britain. The advice is carried in a Dutch farming publication. As reported in April Pig World, the Netherlands expects to be declared free of Aujeszky’s disease in the near future after an extensive vaccination programme. This means it will regain access to the German weaner market. But some producers will also be thinking of sending truckloads of cheap weaners across the North Sea. The Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority says nearly half of the pigs on Dutch pig farms are infected with the MRSA bacteria — ‘the hospital bug’. Eleven percent of pork in shops in Holland is contaminated with bacteria, it claims. Defra sees MRSA is an emerging issue in veterinary medicine, because it has been isolated from dairy cows, pigs and chickens outside the United Kingdom. But it says there is no current evidence that food-producing animals form a reservoir of infection in this country.
British Pig and Poultry Fair New Product Award
Entry form can be downloaded here.
Grants up to £10,000
If you farm in a priority water catchment area, you could pull down up to £10,000 in grant aid towards a wide range of capital equipment and works.Eligible items include roofs for slurry and silage stores, concrete yard renewal, rainwater storage tanks, relocation of gates, yard works for clean/dirty water separation, watercourse fencing, fencing for buffer strips, pumps, livestock troughs, farm-track cross-drains, piped culverts in ditches, resurfacing of gateways, surfacing machinery and livestock tracks, roofing of manure storage. Contact details for your local catchment sensitive farming officer are here (page 18).
LIPS Recipe of the Month for April is here
New Product Award
Pig Fair New Product Award entry forms are here.
Pig Discussion Groups
It is useful for the industry to have a topical list of pig discussion group contacts. Please help by making sure your group is represented on the database that will appear on this site well before the next round of meetings. Complete the form HERE (or ask the appropriate person to complete it). Email addresses will be secured in the database so they cannot be robotically harvested for spam.
l NPA Trade Directory l Mechanical data l National Pig Association l Defra l BBC weather l
l Environment Agency l Food Standards Agency l Quality Meat Scotland l Scottish Executive l
Pig World , PO Box 100, Benniworth, Market Rasen LN8 6LE, United Kingdom