IngAUG

Do consumers care where their food is produced and what
standards are applied through the animals lives?
A recent speech made at a conference in
the USA said that the majority of
consumers could not care where or how
food is produced, as long as it was good
and cheap. It appears most consumers are
more concerned about just how food production affected them rather
than any ethical or welfare issues.
With consumer budgets under pressure, shoppers increasingly seek
value for money but what kind of value are they looking for? Is it the
case that ethical intentions are side-lined when shoppers make
purchase choices?
I know that many consumers care deeply how food is produced. This
question of how and where meat is produced is important as we
make our way in a rather haphazard towards Brexit. At the moment
the United Kingdom complies and usually goes over-and-beyond the
statutory requirements for animal welfare. The UK is well-known for
its high standards of animal rights, all the way from farm to slaughter.
What will happen post-Brexit with the opening up of trade with more
of the world? Will we accept lower food / animal husbandry
standards in the country of origin for the sake of a lower price in the
UK and, if the local farmers are to compete against the expected
lower priced meat, will we see a fall in the standards of livestock
production? We certainly hope not, and I am certain there would be
a huge debacle if this were to happen! The British Veterinary
Association (BVA) is lobbying Parliament for maintenance of
standards, both in the UK and any countries that we may trade with.
When one looks at the segmentation of food purchasing, it appears
to broadly broken into two categories: conventional and organic food
production. Organic food is a niche market and its market share
depends primarily on the prosperity of the population. Consumers
generally like the idea of organic food and will pay a premium for it,
just as long they can afford it.
Ingatestone & Fryerning
Parish Council Meetings for August
Ingatestone & Fryerning Parish Council,
Suite 1, 4 The Limes, Ingatestone, CM4 0BE.
Telephone: 01277 353315 - E-mail:
office@ingatestone-fryerningpc.gov.uk
Full Council
Thursday, 02 August 2018 @ 19:30
Planning
Thursday, 09 August 2018 @ 09:30
In a questionnaire those participants expressing a desire for factors
like organic or certified ethical sourcing often confessed that they
were unwilling to pay the substantially higher price necessary to
obtain these product characteristics. The choice study revealed that
for most participants in their sample, the preferences for the social
factors were small and thus unlikely to outweigh dominating factors
like price, brand and ingredients. A 2005 study that showed
consumers actually avoid learning about how or where a product
was sourced so they do not have to address possible negative
emotions when purchasing products not derived from a welfarefriendly
source.
The largest sector is by far the ‘conventional’ food production. This
category encompasses those consumers that cannot afford organic
food but will care enough to support the standards they are told are
the highest in the world. Perhaps a new sector may make its
emergence with a new sector of imported food that has question
marks over its standards that will exist for those consumers who
couldn’t care less.
Whilst on the topic of post-Brexit changes, veterinary authorities
have welcomed the Government’s move to investigating the
possibility of putting an end to the export of live food-producing
animals from the UK. The latest figures, from 2016, show, each year,
more than 4000 sheep are transported from the UK to continental
Europe. It has long been the BVA’s stance that production animals
should not be transported long distances to the abattoir, but should
be slaughtered as near to the point of production as possible.
Animals should be transported on the hook, as meat, not on the hoof,
as live animals. The existing evidence needs to be studied carefully
to allow evidence-based decisions to be made to see where welfare
improvements can be made.
Jürgen Theinert BVSc BSc MRCVS
Edgewood Veterinary Group
2
Churchyards & Environment
Monday, 13 August 2018 @ 19:30
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Monday, 20 August 2018 @ 19:30
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Tuesday, 21 August 2018 @ 19:30
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Thursday, 23 August 2018 @ 09:30
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