The hot European summer proved a stumbling block with fewer people dining out in stuffy restaurants and looking ahead cultural changes in eating will increasingly influence the market.
Competing proteins are a growing challenge with Taylor citing South American beef as one of them.
While market diversification means reliance on the chilled European Union trade period has lessened, it remains a key period for exporters.
“We have sustained stable volumes on last year and the Cervena programme is showing promising signals with all processors committed to it again for next year.”
The biggest problem for NZ exporters is venison supply is very short at that time of year with peak production tending to come on stream when competition in the market is intensifying.
With negotiations between exporters and the market now complete, as of August 31 the production window runs from September to mid-November.
With the EU chilled window closed, competing venison and game meats now become widely available, weakening NZ’s market position.
While contracts are used much more efficiently in the venison industry compared to the sheep industry there is still a degree of supply uncertainty, Taylor said.
Increasing venison consumption in a market better aligned with NZ’s production season is challenging.
“That’s the promotional activity we turn the focus to now.”
DINZ chef Graham Brown is on a promotion campaign in Sweden, Belgium and Germany and feedback is going very well, Taylor said.
“It’s also promising that we have work for a further chef and we have Kiwi chef Shannon Campbell now in Germany continuing work with importers and marketing companies.”
DINZ continues to support activities in China through a Primary Growth Partnership with Canterbury-based Mount River Processing.
“We are getting some good results from this (PGP) working with Chinese chef Alan Yu who has two restaurants in key locations in Shanghai.
“We look forward to working with him in front of some new audiences.”
Following his stint in Europe Brown will go to Canada where he will work with the Lamb Company, a business dealing with both venison and lamb.
Canada is tagged as an emerging market for NZ venison.
“It’s an emerging market with a cultural identity associated with game hunting so venison is not new to them and our NZ story resonates with them, especially around animal welfare.”
Venison schedules at $11.30-$11.40/kg across the country are sitting at an all-time high.
But there are reports of market resistance to NZ’s high prices.
“There’s some indication the game season will present challenges and pricing will be dependent on how that shapes up.”
