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| AGRIFOOD Gates Foundation supports agricultural development The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has announced a $306 million package of agricultural development grants designed to boost the yields and incomes of millions of small farmers in Africa and other parts of the developing world so they can lift themselves and their families out of hunger and poverty. At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland in January, Bill Gates, co-chair of the foundation, said that support for agriculture in the developing world had been relatively neglected in recent decades, but was a critical tool to drive development in rural areas, where the vast majority of the world’s poorest people still live. Gates was joined by Dr Namanga Ngongi, President of the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) and World Bank President Robert Zoellick. “If we are serious about ending extreme hunger and poverty around the world, we must be serious about transforming agriculture for small farmers, most of whom are women. These investments – from improving the quality of seeds, to developing healthier soil, to creating new markets, will pay off not only in children fed and lives saved. They will have a dramatic impact on poverty reduction as families generate additional income and improve their lives,” said Mr Gates. The grants nearly double the foundation’s investments in agriculture since the launch of its Agricultural Development initiative, part of the foundation’s Global Development Program, in mid 2006. The largest grant in the package is a $164.5 million grant to the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) to establish a Soil Health Program to revitalise Africa’s severely depleted soils and help farmers make full use of new high-yielding varieties of Africa’s staple food crops. The other five grants, to CARE, Heifer International, International Development Enterprises, International Rice Research Institute and TechnoServe, total $141.5 million and will support the development of local science, technology, farmer extension services, and market systems. The grants illustrate the range of interventions needed to ensure small farmers have the tools and opportunities to improve their lives. Bumper season for Australian baby garlic Perfection Fresh, which has marketed and distributed niche garlic products on behalf of Australian Garlic Producers for the past four years, launched the Australian garlic season with baby garlic and Australian Garlic Paste throughout Woolworths stores nationally in February. The Australian baby garlic season runs until the end of May and the paste will be available all year. Australian Garlic Producers’ director Nick Diamantopoulos said that this season’s yield had increased due to a significant industry investment in world first automated harvesting equipment, expansion of growing regions and the ability to process baby garlic much earlier than previous years. “We have the capacity to handle a larger volume of baby garlic, much earlier. Production of garlic has always been extremely labour intensive – and it is still inspected and finished by hand – but our new packing facility and expanded growing regions in Victoria and Tasmania mean Australian garlic will be available in larger quantities for longer than ever before,” he said. The Australian Garlic Producers is hoping to supply a record 1000 tonnes this year (up from 220 tonnes in 2007) with the objective to double that for the 2009 season and to supply 5000 tonnes by 2011. “We are aiming to supply the market with garlic for 12 months of the year and we are close to five months now. We are also undergoing trials and research and development into establishing early, middle and late harvesting varieties which will help us achieve our goal of working towards a long-term import replacement program,” said Mr Diamantopoulos. Perfection Fresh marketing manager, Lee Tippett, said that baby garlic, launched in 2004, and Australian Garlic Paste, launched last year, had established strong consumer followings with all products performing extremely well at retail level. “Consumers are becoming aware that Australian grown garlic is the purest, safest and healthiest in the world. Unlike some imported garlic, Australian grown garlic is not cool-stored for up to 11 months, treated with growth inhibitors or bleached in chlorine to achieve a white appearance,” said Ms Tippett. Australian Garlic Paste is the first and only 100%
Australian-grown garlic paste on the market. Made from gourmet garlic
varieties, it comprises 96% garlic, 4% olive oil and natural preservatives.
One teaspoon is equivalent to a clove of fresh garlic. The paste has
a shelf life of six months. RETAIL Australian retail trends' Service stations with convenience stores, chain convenience stores and independent convenience stores/milk bars/delis are the strongest performing channels in the route trade market according to industry analyst and forecaster, BIS Shrapnel (www.bis.com.au). Route trade outlets include stand alone convenience store chains, independent convenience stores/corner stores/delicatessens/milk bars, butchers/chicken shops, fruit and vegetable shops, confectionery retailers, bakeries, newsagents, cinemas/theatres, video stores, chemists, liquor stores, tobacconists and service stations (without convenience stores). The route trade market competes in terms of price, location and product range against foodservice outlets and supermarkets, which are very substantial and well-defined channels, according to BIS Shrapnel’s Route Trade in Australia, 2007 to 2009 report. Qualitative interviews with route trade outlets indicate consumers patronise each channel of route trade for different reasons. Service stations with convenience stores, which attract customers due to their long opening hours, quick service, short queues and good location, are expected to continue to grow in numbers, according to BIS Shrapnel’s senior project manager and report author, Jan Kosky Roach. Chain convenience stores benefit from last minute
shoppers picking up forgotten items and the value people place on a
clean environment and long opening hours, according to the survey results.
BIS Shrapnel observed that there is also an increasing incidence of
foodservice being offered in this channel, which opens up a further
revenue stream for owners and operators. “In many EU markets, foodservice accounts for up to 60% of turnover in route trade outlets while in many South East Asian markets, the share of foodservice is much lower,” she said. The key to the success of independent convenience stores/milk bar/deli/corner stores lies in their customer service and the personal relationship between owner and customer. “Given the independence of non-chain corner stores, they are better able to tailor their product range to suit the neighbourhood,” said Ms Kosky Roach. BIS Shrapnel estimates that there are 40000 route trade outlets nationally which turn over sales of confectionery, bakery products, snacks, dairy products, grocery products and beverages in excess of $3.3 billion annually. Ms Kosky Roach considers this to be a saturated market. “Some of the smaller outlets in the route trade channel have expanded their product range to compete. For instance, many newsagents and pharmacies sell products such as confectionery, savoury snacks and drinks, which are traditionally sold by ‘corner stores’ and supermarkets,” she said. The Route Trade in Australia, 2007 to 2009 report says the most significant product categories for route trade outlets are cold beverages, confectionery, bakery items and snacks. BIS Shrapnel forecasts growth of only 0.4% in turnover during the next two years as the route trade sector struggles to develop in competition with supermarkets and foodservice outlets. Shopping for food According to a new shopper study from The Nielsen Company, consumers experience up to four different shopping ‘modes’ during grocery shopping – auto-pilot, seeking variety, buzz and bargain-hunting – which directly influence their purchases. The Nielsen study, which looked at consumer shopping behaviour towards making purchases across 30 food categories, revealed that, depending on what kind of item or category consumers were purchasing, they might be in auto-pilot mode (grab and go), seeking variety mode, (seeking new tastes and formats), highly susceptible to ‘buzz’ mode (and open to engaging advertising) or are simply on the hunt for a bargain (on the lookout for price discounts and promotions). “Our Shopping Modality study uniquely integrated retail sales data with advanced consumer insights and found that shopping dynamics varied significantly across the thirty grocery categories surveyed, with shoppers adopting one of four different ‘shopping modes’ as they went about their shopping,” said Johnny Panagiotidis, Director, Client Service, The Nielsen Company. “Furthermore, when promotional activity and product launch information was analysed against survey results, we could tell which categories/products were being over-promoted (and therefore a waste of money), and which new products successfully engaged consumers’ minds – and therefore market share – across different categories,” he said. “Shoppers don’t waste energy on everyday decisions. To simplify their lives, they often shop in grab-and-go mode, reaching for the brands they usually buy without reading the label or checking the price. At these times, they are on auto-pilot, brand choice is highly habitual and in these moments shoppers are not in the market to try anything new, and marketers need to tailor their strategies to reach them. Items such as coffee, cereals, cheese, margarine and mayonnaise fall within a shoppers’ ‘auto-pilot’ mode,” he added. According to the Nielsen study, the key to breaking through to shoppers on auto-pilot lies in knowing when and how auto-pilot can be disrupted by external stimuli. When this happens, shoppers re-evaluate their decisions; they look at alternatives and consider new offers. “Certain categories are all about auto-pilot shopping behaviour. People are quite particular about their coffee, for example, yet our research showed that brand choice actually becomes highly habitual. Consumers are reassured they will get the same caffeine fix, the same flavour and the same coffee experience. Why mess with it by experimenting with a different brand? The implication for marketers in auto-pilot categories is that if you are a leader then avoid radical repositioning or pack changes; you may risk disrupting habitual behaviour which drives brand choice in your favour,” advised Mr Panagiotidis. However, the same rules don’t apply in Buzz-activated categories. Buzz-activated categories include energy and sports drinks, chocolate, ready-to-drink tea and yoghurt drinks. “Customers aren’t on auto-pilot when they shop for these products – instead their radar is fully turned on as they actively explore alternatives. Marketers of buzz categories need to generate buzz through exciting advertising, new introductions and innovative packaging that leaps off the shelves to grab the consumers’ interest and attention,” he said. And while new product beverages such as energy drinks are highly activated by buzz, driven through excitement generated in-store and pre-store, the study also found that chocolates (with a high rate of brand extensions and new ‘flavours’) also resonated with the dynamics of Buzz-activated strategies. With Variety-activated categories, auto-pilot is often switched off when shoppers cruise frozen foods and cold cereals aisles. Consumers get bored with the same choices, or they are seeking internal affirmation as the household ‘chef’ that they can deliver variety and surprise in their role. In this context, exciting and informative packaging plays a major role in purchase decision as consumers are browsing actively and on the lookout for interesting and new product innovations. Biscuits, chewing gum and salad dressings also fall into the variety seeking shopper mode. On the other hand, Bargain-hunter activated categories are driven by purely price comparison and promotions. Products which were often shopped for in Bargain-hunter mode include canned tuna, canned tomatoes, canned fruit and pasta sauces. “For FMCG marketers it comes down to knowing what ‘mode’ shoppers are in when they shop for specific products or categories. The old truth about striking while the iron is hot is directly applicable,” said Mr Panagiotidis. Shoppers and house brands Despite significant growth in recent years, supermarkets’ “house brand” products have failed to live up to expectations. Business information analysts IBISWorld have looked at whether there’s a future for private label products in Australian supermarkets. IBISWorld General Manager (Australia), Jason Baker, says that in 2004 the supermarket industry predicted that the house brand segment would contribute 30% of overall sales by this year. But it hasn’t happened. Shoppers haven’t taken up the private label cause with quite the enthusiasm retailers envisaged. The question is – have house brands failed, and do they have a future? The answers are – not quite and absolutely. Last year, house brand sales rose more than 18% to account for 19.1% of packaged grocery sales in 2006 on the back of improved quality and better marketing, with budget European supermarket ALDI driving the trend towards private label grocery products. With the arrival of Woolworths’ Select and other “new” private label products into the market, IBISWorld expects that house brands’ market share will exceed 20% in 2005. While that’s a long way off the 30% market share expectation, Mr Baker believes that initial expectations were too high. “As a new area everyone thought house brands would be ‘the next big thing’. And they are to some extent, but it takes a long time for consumers to change their shopping habits. While the initial growth figures weren’t reached, the trend upwards is still a strong one,” he said. Surprisingly too, Mr Baker said that Australian supermarket
giants Coles and Woolworths have seen their house brand growth stalling,
but that wouldn’t be the case for long. IBISWorld expects the
major players in the Australian industry to seriously ramp up their
house brand strategy over the coming couple of years in a bid to catch
up with European counterparts which have taken to the concept with vigour.
In fact, house brands have a 31% share of the British market and more
than 20% across most European markets. Big generic brand sellers for food include basic goods such as: sugar (54%), eggs (56%), flour, milk (55%), nuts, dried fruits and smallgoods, all of which have more than a 20% share of their market. Items which don’t sell well as house brands
include segments that are dominated by very strong and loyal brand awareness,
such as soft drinks. “It’s true that house brand growth hasn’t
hit the heights predicted in recent years, but the sector is still growing,
and with the major emphasis retailers are promising to put on their
own brands, failure is an unlikely outcome,” it said. IBISWorld expects that the next stage of private labelling will target health products, coffee, laundry detergents and other goods. Analysis suggests that while all households purchase private label goods, those with more than five members are the biggest buyers, and branded product manufacturers are taking notice. According to the AFGC, the private label targets set by Coles and Woolworths might not have a massive impact on leading labels, but will do a lot of damage to branded manufacturers ranked third and fourth in their category. Coles announced plans to boost its private label market share to between 30% and 40% by this year by replacing its existing Savings, Farmland, Coles, Reliance and Persona brands with up to 3000 lines in either the Coles Smart Buy, You’ll Love Coles and George J Coles categories. And while Woolworths is hanging onto its budget Home Brand label, along with Woolworths Fresh, Organics and Naytura brands, it also plans to bring in an additional 200 lines as part of its premium brand Woolworths Select, to compete with the market leader in each of its product categories. At the same time, it will phase out previous private label brands Ark, Bowman’s and Marketta, which were launched in response to ALDI’s arrival. The growing popularity of ALDI supermarkets, and its push for private label products, may be both a threat and an opportunity for Australian manufacturers, with as many as 6000 new private label brands likely to hit our shelves within the next five years. “While 80% of ALDI’s suppliers are local manufacturers, some segments of the industry fear the ALDI model threatens suppliers as its high demand for private label merchandise means that if a supplier won’t provide their own brand to a retailer’s specifications, then someone else will. On the other hand, suppliers who are willing to be contract manufacturers to ALDI view its market entry as healthy competition,” said Mr Baker. The advertising and marketing industries won’t be able to ignore the future growth of private label brands either, according to IBISWorld, as the change will have noticeable implications on retailers’ promotional activities. As supermarkets with strong private brands boost their TV and print media advertising to notify customers of new products and to attract them in-store with discount offers and mass-media promotions, commercial television networks and major newspapers are likely to benefit, with smaller advertising agencies will most likely lose out. Further information and analysis is available on www.ibisworld.com.au. Many enjoy grocery shopping Although buying groceries isn’t everyone’s idea of a great day out, investigations by Roy Morgan Research show that almost half of all main grocery buyers enjoy the grocery shopping experience. Presenting at the National Retail Forum, in Melbourne in August 2007, Roy Morgan Research has been investigating consumer attitudes towards household grocery shopping over the past twenty years, however in the last eight years has encountered fluctuating results between genders. “Throughout the years we have found that men typically enjoy grocery shopping more than women, although the difference between the sexes is typically only a few percentage points,” said Simon Pownall, Director of Analytics and Integrated Marketing, Roy Morgan Research. “We experienced a peak in 2002, with 50% of males and 47% of females admitting they enjoyed grocery shopping. Our latest statistics show that an equal amount of men and women enjoy their daily, weekly, fortnightly, or monthly trip to the grocery store – in fact it’s almost half with 47%.” To make the experience more pleasurable, at the same time increasing sales, retailers are now marketing to their consumers’ noses with the latest in-store fragrancing technology that can replicate anything from the alluring scent of freshly baked bread or the appetising smell of apple pie. Ecomist showcased its aroma marketing system at Retail Expo Australasia, in Melbourne in August. “Research shows that aromas are a simple but powerful way to help create a point of difference between yours and other retail stores. Customers tend to have longer browsing times, a better perception of the brand, impulse purchasing increases and staff are happier,” said Mark Gordon, National Marketing Manager, Ecomist. The in-store fragrance technology is supported by studies by Swinburne University of Technology, Victoria, that indicate that using appealing fragrances in retail stores is linked to a substantial increase in a customer’s perception of its merchandise and service quality – the key is finding the fragrance that best suits the retailing environment. MEAT, POULTRY, SEAFOOD World fresh meats market Rise in disposable incomes and changing consumer preferences are key forces shaping growth in the world fresh and processed meats market. The world fresh meats market is projected to reach 251 million tons by the year 2010. The industry has come a long way from the year 1991, when fresh meat consumption was pegged at 29067 thousand tons. Healthy market gains will stem from Latin America, Middle East, and Asia-Pacific in that order. The fresh and processed meats market is benefiting by the growing popularity of natural, organic, and low-fat meat, as a result of the low carbohydrate diet fad. Steadily growing consumer demand for pre-cooked and easy-to-prepare meat products is additionally strengthening the demand for processed meats. Innovations such as flavoured sausages are expected to stimulate sales in the marketplace in the upcoming years. Globalisation of food trends, strong economic growth, and recovery of major markets from foodborne diseases such as Avian influenza and BSE, are together expected to increase world meat trade in the coming years. In 2006, Japan imported 1152 thousand tonnes of pork, and 705 thousand tonnes of beef and veal, while Russia followed distantly behind with 681 thousand tonnes of pork and 694 thousand tonnes of beef and veal. The United States, which imported just 434 thousand metric tons of pork in the year 2006, imported over 1534 thousand tonnes of beef and veal in the same year. On the export front, European Union exported 1401 thousand tonnes of pork, followed by the United States and Canada with 1206, and 1094 thousand tonnes respectively. Brazil with 1786 thousand tonnes, was the largest exporter of beef and veal in year 2006. During the same year, United States was the largest producer of broiler meat with production averaging to 15 869 thousand tons. Asia-Pacific dominates the world meat industry with a 39% share, followed by Europe, and the United States. Asia-Pacific also ranks as the largest consumer of fresh pork, accounting for over 58% share in the total global market. The fresh pork market in Europe is projected to reach 25 402 thousand tons by the year 2010. The world fresh lamb and goat market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.2% over the study’s analysis period, with the market in Asia-Pacific slated to rise by 1022 thousand tonnes between 2007 to 2010. Latin America, Europe and Asia-Pacific are the three largest markets for fresh beef and veal. While growth in Latin American, and European fresh beef and veal market slows down, Asia-Pacific is forecast to post healthy CAGR of 4.7% over the period 2000 through to 2010. The world fresh poultry market is dominated by the United States with a 25% share and a market size of 15 280 thousand tons in the year 2006. Global and regional players operating in the industry
include Amadori, Cargill Meat Solutions Corporation, ConAgra Foods Inc,
Danish Crown, Gold Kist, Inc, Grampian Country Food Group Ltd., Hormel
Foods Corporation, Maple Leaf Foods, Inc., The report from Global Industry Analysts Inc titled Meat (Fresh And Processed): A Global Strategic Business Report provides a comprehensive review of market trends, drivers, issues, and challenges. Annotated with authoritative, and unbiased commentaries, and hard-to-find statistical facts, the report provides unequivocal views on future potential while throwing light on the prevailing climate in key product markets. Product segments analysed include Fresh Pork, Fresh Lamb & Goat, Fresh Beef & Veal, and Fresh Poultry. Latent demand patterns are quantified across major geographic market verticals, which include among others, the United States, Canada, Japan, France, Germany, United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America. Also included in the report is an enumeration of recent mergers, acquisitions, and other strategic industry activities. Further details about this research report are available from www.strategyr.com/MCP-2221.asp and www.prweb.com//releases/fresh_meats_market/fresh_pork_market/prweb537451.htm. Award for Beef CRC Australia’s largest integrated beef research program, the Cooperative Research Centre for Beef Genetic Technologies (Beef CRC) has been recognised with a 2007 Cooperative Research Centre Association (CRCA) Excellence in Innovation Award. The award recognises a novel ‘Improvement and Innovation system,’ designed by the Beef CRC to rapidly accelerate the rate of technology uptake and boost the profitability and sustainability of tens of thousands of small-to-mediums sized enterprises (SME) in the Australian and New Zealand beef industries. Beef CRC Chief Executive Officer Dr Heather Burrow said that the award officially recognised the Beef CRC’s innovative approaches to increasing the uptake of technology by beef industry end-users. “For the past 14 years, the Beef CRC has been widely recognised throughout Australia and internation-ally for its groundbreaking science, which now underpins Meat Standards Australia, as well as its cutting edge bovine genomics research. But an even greater challenge than delivering such world-leading technologies, is to have them used effectively by the more than 70 000 SMEs throughout Australia and New Zealand, who we know can significantly improve the productivity, profitability and sustainability of their businesses through customised use of Beef CRC technologies,” she said. “At the moment, we are literally at the bottom of the opportunity curve in terms of uptake of technologies by beef industry endusers. And over the next 10–15 years, significant new genomic technologies, now being developed by Beef CRC, will dramatically change the way producers and suppliers do global business. This meant it was imperative that Beef CRC identified new and innovative ways of rapidly accelerating technology uptake by very large numbers of beef industry end-users. “Based on product value, Australia is the world’s largest beef exporter, competing against huge beef powerhouses like Brazil. For Australia to remain competitive, our beef industry needs to be ahead of the pack. This requires efficient and effective use of technology and innovation by the tens of thousands of beef industry SMEs throughout Australia,” said Dr Burrow. With support from partners including the State Departments
of Primary Industry in all Australian states, Meat and Livestock Australia
and Meat and Wool New Zealand, the Beef CRC has implemented a novel
system of ‘Continuous Improvement and Using this process, each Beef Profit Partnership commits to review progress every 90 days, over at least two years, to design, test and evaluate new opportunities for business improvement. The process uses a proven action-learning framework, where the Beef Profit Partnerships trial and measure the economic impact of new technologies in their own beef businesses on an ongoing basis. In Western Australia, Beef Profit Partnerships have been established at Esperance, Manjimup, Albany and Moora. A Beef Supply Chain Partnership has also been established in conjunction with Harvey Beef. “The Beef Profit Partnership approach is focused on outcomes such as profitability, productivity, sustainability and compliance with exacting market specifications, rather than on the technologies such as DNA markers, which is the more traditional approach to technology transfer. Our approach focuses thinking and action to achieve higher returns on investment. Most importantly, it is specifically designed to be more rewarding than ‘business as usual,’ because it has the ability to change the face of industry. As a result, the entire beef industry becomes more profitable, creative and innovative,” concluded Dr Burrow. Grain shortage impacts chicken meat prices Chicken is a nutritious and staple element of the Australian family diet and has enjoyed low prices for many years, despite the rising cost of major inputs such as feed grains (due to the drought), petrol prices for transport and deliveries and electricity prices which have been worn by the industry. This situation is no longer sustainable with the price of chicken meat rising in mid November. The price of a tonne of wheat, the industry’s single biggest input cost, has more than doubled in a year and hit a new high in October of $492. Grain represents the major part of chicken feed, for which there is no substitute. Feed in turn makes up more than 60% of the cost of producing a meat chicken and the recent increase in feed costs alone translates into cost increases in excess of 20-30%. Dr Andreas Dubs, Executive Director
of the Australian Chicken Meat Federation, said, “The two predominant
grains in chicken feed, wheat and sorghum, account for approximately
70% of the feed, with other grains, protein meals, fats, vitamins and
Coupled with this, fuel costs have continued to rise
from an average 115c per litre in November 2006 to 125c per litre in
July 2007 and electricity costs have almost doubled. Even following this price increase, the Federation maintains that chicken meat remains very affordable. They say that, unlike other meats, the price of chicken, when adjusted for inflation, has remained constant for over a decade. The industry’s substantial efficiency gains (achieved through improved breeding and nutrition) have continually been passed on to consumers as reflected by chicken meat now selling for about half as much as it did in 1970. A new standard for fish names According to Seafood Services Australia more than 200 years of confusion about fish names in Australia has come to an end. For the first time since Captain Cook landed in Botany Bay in 1770 and recorded catching a “snapper”, a name he was familiar with from the West Indies but belonging to an entirely different family to the Australian variety, Australian fish and other seafood species now have a standard set of common names. Australian Standard AS SSA 5300 – 2007: Australian Fish Names Standards was launched in October at Seafood Directions, the seafood industry national conference in Hobart, by the Federal Minister for Fisheries, Forestry & Conservation, Senator Eric Abetz. Roy Palmer, Chairman of the Federal Government’s Australian Fish Names Committee, said that six years’ hard work by a dedicated group of seafood experts had produced a standard name for a total of 4500 varieties of seafood, both locally harvested and imported. The Australian Fish Names Committee was funded by the Australian Government through the Fisheries Research & Development Corporation. Seafood Services Australia (SSA) was accredited by Standards Australia as a Standards Development Organisation charged with managing the standard’s development. “It wasn’t always an easy task convincing people they needed to let go of local names, no matter how quaint, in favour of a single name across the nation. I guess it was fairly easy for something like the snotnose trevalla but a bit harder with the Tommy Ruff. The Australian Fish Names Committee knew that we simply had to make these changes to stop the purchasers’ confusion, and, in some cases, to stop deliberate substitution of cheaper fish under false names,” said Mr Palmer. “The standard names apply at all levels of the marketing chain, from harvest to final retail sale. They will also improve assessment of fish stocks by fisheries managers, who will now be using the same names throughout Australia, which is why there are 4500 standard names on the list, not just 300 for the common commercial species. Also, a raft of tools has been devised to help everyone to come to grips with the Australian Standard, including websites, e learning resources, posters and books,” he added. SSA Managing Director Ted Loveday said that production from the Australian seafood industry was more than $2 billion annually, and the jobs of about 80 000 people depended on it. “Standardising fish names was on the agenda
at least 80 years ago, when the Sydney Fish Market held meetings on
regional variations in names. And for nearly 30 years the process has
moved around between government and industry. But it wasn’t until
2001, with the Australian Government funding the Australian Fish Names
Committee, that there has been a body to take control of the challenge
and resolve it decisively,” he said. NZ government backs seafood initiative The New Zealand Foundation for Research, Science and Technology has announced investment of nearly NZ$2.8 million in the development of innovative fishing technologies that will lead to a more humane and productive capture of New Zealand wildfish species. The “Wildfish 2020” project proposed by Crop & Food Research and industry partners, including New Zealand’s major fishing companies, is expected to deliver $NZ149 million a year in increased export revenue by 2020. Crop & Food Research CEO Mark Ward said that the government investment backs substantial investment already made by his company in the wild fish sector. “Crop & Food Research has been directing its seafood investment and R&D programs towards building New Zealand’s reputation for high quality seafoods harvested sustainably from New Zealand waters. This project will develop new trawling technologies that are based on understanding fish physiology and behaviour. Better fish-capture technologies will reduce losses during capture and ensure higher quality raw materials enter the seafood value chain,” he said. Lower intensity fishing practices and technology focused on the tolerances of fish have the potential to avoid tissue damage sustained by exhausted fish. Mr Ward said that the aim of the project is to underpin a paradigm shift in the way New Zealanders appreciate, manage, use and gain value from our wild fisheries. “Our quota management system is considered superior to most but this research shows real government and industry commitment to continued new thinking about our wild fish resource,” he concluded. NZ currently harvests and exports wild fish with an annual export value of NZ$870m, of which about NZ$530m is from midwater trawled fisheries, NZ$170m from squid and NZ$170m from inshore fisheries. NZ provides only 2% of international trade in seafood (NZ$1.2b total annual revenue to NZ) but seafood is NZ’s fifth biggest export earner. |
Fresh
produce marketing company Perfection Fresh will this year send nearly
five times more Australian-grown baby garlic to market than last season,
due to significant advances in production and harvesting techniques
in the past year.
