Modern technology meets tradition in top-quality meats

19 July 2016

Modern technology meets ancient tradition in top-quality European meats

Cutting edge technology ensures that European pork, beef, and pork and beef products are safe for New Zealand families without sacrificing generations of knowledge in producing succulent meat.

Consumers are increasingly looking for high quality, natural foods without compromising on taste or ethical issues.

The ‘We Are What We Eat’ report by Nielsen, which surveyed 30,000 people in 60 countries, found that “when it comes to the foods we eat, consumers are going back to the basics”.

For 43% of respondents, desirable attributes in foods - such as being fresh, containing natural ingredients, not containing genetically modified organisms and being minimally processed - are very important.

While European pork and beef producers tap into shared, centuries-old experiences in farming to produce a tasty and fresh staple food, advanced technology and strict guidelines mean their products are also safe, ethical and delicious for Kiwi families.

The modern approach to the quality of pork, beef, and pork and beef products in Europe is made up of many elements, enabling effective monitoring of technological, hygienic, and ethical qualities in these popular types of meat.

In order to achieve the best technological results, directly following slaughter, a series of tests assessing the water absorption, acidity, content and characteristics of fat, size of cuttings, and the antioxidant status of meat is carried out.

These results can determine the further use of each piece of meat, and enable producers to precisely define the technological quality of beef, pork, and beef and pork products.

With high levels of protein and essential vitamins such as B12, pork and beef are valued types of meat and constitute an important basic element in the diet of many New Zealand families.

It is therefore crucial that this meat does not contain harmful substances, and this is ensured by European Union (EU) laws regarding feed and management of animals.

Those provisions require producers to systematically monitor the composition of feed and drinking water for the presence of heavy metals and antibiotics, as well as to use appropriate materials for the construction of coops, lying space, and troughs in animal housing in order to guarantee the safety of meat delivered to Kiwi dinner tables.

EU producers in the meat industry also strictly abide by the Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP), Good Hygiene Practices (GHP), Good Agricultural Practice (GAP), and the Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) regulations.

These make sure producers effectively manage the hygienic standards of beef, pork, and beef and pork products, and the assessment of their microbiological purity. In addition, EU regulations oblige veterinary services to continuously monitor animal breeding, transport and slaughter, as well as meat treatment and processing to prevent the presence of sick animals in the food chain.

For the increasing number of consumers conscious of ethical issues surrounding animal welfare, EU regulations regarding animal breeding, including breeding of pigs and cows, are in place with the understanding that animal welfare has a crucial impact on the quality of produced meat.

Meat producers in the EU must observe strict legal acts which apply to animal breeding, rearing, transport to the slaughterhouse, and slaughter.

As part of those regulations, animals are also required to have an appropriate living space, and the rooms in which they live must have access to natural light (or a lighting system) and a ventilation system. The corridors and ramps used for loading and unloading animals are also constructed to protect the animals from any cutting or bruising.

All of these regulations and practices, combined with centuries-old experience, means the EU meat industry produce products of high, reproducible quality ready for Kiwi families and meat-lovers to enjoy all year round.

For more information visit http://www.meatfromerope.eu

-ENDS-

© Scoop Media