The research would see consumers asked for their views on fresh lamb, manufactured meat products and prototype health supplements and would be the first stage of a new Primary Growth Partnership (PGP) called Targeting New Wealth with High Health that involved lamb exporter Alliance Group, the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) and Headwaters Group.
The programme aimed to reach existing and emerging markets with a new class of premium lamb products with improved health qualities.
As part of this, the programme was also exploring the development of new packaging systems offering the potential to produce final consumer-ready packs at Alliance Group plants, therefore avoiding reprocessing and adding more value to the product.
Marketing general manager at Alliance Group, Murray Brown said the programme formed a key part of the co-operative’s drive to move away from commodity production and target “new wealth” markets with new higher value products.
“Consumer insight is the beginning of any food journey leading away from commodity production. The first stage of this programme is a better understanding of consumers at the intersection of red meat, nutrition and health.”
Brown said a large range of lamb breeders, finishers and research organisations would play a major role as the programme progressed.
“Our aim is to differentiate NZ lamb and ultimately improve returns for all farmers.
“We see real benefit here for all sheep farmers but we need more information about the market appetite for these premium products first.”
MPI’s PGP acting director Michael Jamieson said the programme had the potential to provide greater returns across the value-chain.
“This will reinforce NZ’s reputation as a premium, healthy and innovative food producer. It will also develop valuable insights, knowledge and expertise that can be applied to other NZ meat sectors, enabling extensive collaboration and information sharing. These are wider benefits enabled by the PGP.”
Headwaters New Zealand – a group of Alliance farmer shareholders was gearing up to provide trial animals for part of the programme, which focused on how production systems could impact on consumer-health traits. The aim was to develop and prove production systems which were better for the farmer and the consumer and then roll them out to the wider industry.
The $25 million, seven-year programme has the potential to deliver $400m in additional revenue to the primary sector over 25 years.
