For some years now the agricultural sector has drummed on about our point of difference. We produce milk in a sustainable way, our grass-fed, free-range systems mean our food tastes better, is better for you and is easier on the land.
We want to gain a premium and move up the value chain. We want to supply high-end consumers with products they enjoy the taste of, enjoy the health benefits of and be satisfied that the provenance of that product is sound. Every report I get from people travelling abroad is the same. People are buying more than just a lump of meat, they’re also buying a story and it’s one that has to make for good reading.
Recent international news stories by the likes of Al Jazeera and the BBC looking at our environmental records aren’t the story we want to tell. Sure, we can debate the fairness of those tales, we can debate the science and we can rightly point to the mitigations and innovations we’ve put in place to improve our performance when it comes to the enviroment, welfare and provenance.
But I’m not really talking about the science here, I’m talking about marketing, about perception. We know what our international customers demand and arguing with them about the intricacies of the stories they’re hearing won’t help.
So why not front foot it. Why not get into the system, pay our way and work hard to minimise the cost by reducing our footprint? As long as it’s fair, transparent and manageable what is there to be afraid of, really? Won’t we just be a bit closer to where we want to be – world renowned producers of sustainable, environmentally friendly food?
