Protecting our unique red meat brands
The Welsh Lamb and Welsh Beef brands are renowned worldwide for quality, sustainable production and industry-leading traceability. The origin and unique qualities of both have been protected over the years by the Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) status, awarded by the European Commission nearly two decades ago, and more recently by the UK Government’s new Geographical Indication (GI) Scheme.
This protection and recognition are of enormous economic importance to the Welsh red meat industry. It has guaranteed the authenticity and integrity of the brands and prevented unfair competition.
In the early years, it led to us at Hybu Cig Cymru – Meat Promotion Wales (HCC), the red meat promotion and development agency, to implement a verification scheme for abattoirs and cutting plants. The scheme continues to provide for strict control and monitoring to ensure that only lamb and beef which meet the specifications is labelled as Welsh. These insist that an animal was born and reared in Wales, is fully traceable and is slaughtered and processed in an HCC approved abattoir or cutting plant.
Using the PGI status to protect the unique qualities of Welsh Lamb and Welsh Beef, together with promoting the sustainability credentials of the products, is key to their success. It has led to greater sales and enhanced reputation in key markets, including many export destinations with 40% of Welsh Lamb being sold overseas.
And then we had Brexit. There was nervousness in the industry regarding the future of PGI protection within the UK and EU; it was a protection that was too valuable to lose. A major relief was felt when all product names protected in the EU also became protected and mutually recognised under the new UK GI Scheme from 1 January 2021 – and this included Welsh Lamb and Welsh Beef.
It now means that our red meat brands are protected by both EU and UK legislation. We at HCC are working with the industry to adopt a dual approach for Welsh Lamb and Welsh Beef branding where the PGI logo will continue to appear alongside the Welsh Lamb and Welsh Beef logos, with the EU logo used on products sold into the EU, and the UK logo used on products sold elsewhere.
Similar to the EU Scheme, the UK’s GI Scheme guarantees a product’s characteristics or reputation, authenticity and origin. It protects the product name from misuse or imitation.
With more and more consumers demanding that the food they buy can be traced back to its origin, HCC has taken things one step further by taking advantage of the latest traceability testing science to provide further guarantees to the public on the origin of lamb and beef.
Forensic ‘origin fingerprint’ technology, undertaken by world leaders Oritain, has been used since 2018 to reinforce the PGI promise and deliver the ultimate in farm to fork traceability for Welsh Lamb and Welsh Beef. The use of such innovative technology is unique for a GI product and has won food industry awards.
It cleverly analyses trace elements and isotopes, which animals absorb from their natural environment and the grass and water that they consume, to establish a distinctive Welsh ‘fingerprint of origin’. We collect samples for testing from anywhere in the supply chain, anywhere in the world to ensure consistency with the Welsh origin claim.
The agreement with Oritain, in addition to the protection through the EU and the UK legislation, means that Welsh Lamb and Welsh Beef’s excellent reputation for traceability and quality is maintained among consumers in the UK and beyond.