Finding Latest Feed Info
The USDA estimates that US grain stocks are likely to remain plentiful at the end of the 09-10 marketing year, with production of corn and wheat likely to outweigh any increase in demand.

In Brazil, the soybean harvest is thought to be 25% complete with the 08/09 production total expected to remain close to previous estimates at 57Mt; the soybean harvest in Argentina will not commence until April.
For more feed prices and commentary click here.

Marketing News

Bacon Connoisseurs Week
The third Bacon Connoisseurs Week kicks off on Monday and it's shaping up to be an action packed week! Here is just a flavour (forgive the pun) of some of the activities planned for the week:  Our celebrity Bacon lover, Anna Ryder Richardson will be tantalising the nation’s taste buds with a morning of radio interviews with radio stations around the country.  The 2009 Connoisseur Bacon winners will be announced at the official launch event in London, attended by all 12 finalists from the competition.  Sir Terry Wogan will be presented with his very own Speciality Bacon, created specially for him by the 2008 Bacon Connoisseurs Week winning butcher.  Sir Terry will also enjoy a week long 'menu' of bacon delights, showing the versatility and range of premium bacon, in line with this year’s theme, ''Bacon - Breakfast and Beyond'.  Our very own LIPs ladies will be zipping around the country delivering bacon sandwiches to local radio stations.  15 regional newspapers and 15 regional radio stations will be running bacon themed competitions throughout the week.  Also London based radio stations will be enjoying a Bacon Frittata to keep them going through their morning show.  The majority of major retailers will be running promotional activity throughout the week, from price promotions to on pack recipes and recipe booklet giveaways.  Also independent retail butchers, have all received promotional material to support the week.  For more info go to www.lovebacon.info

Best Ever Roadshow!
The Reebok Stadium in Bolton this week, saw over 60 butchers enter almost 350 products at the latest Regional Product Evaluation Roadshow.   The biggest event to date saw ten butchers emerge triumphant as category champions.  Picking up the coveted Overall Champions title for the North West was Boxleys of Wombourne, with their unique ‘Hoop Pork Pie’. Based on a traditional recipe the innovative pie not only delivered on taste and texture but its novel appearance proved to be a hit with the judges!  As well as succeeding in the pork pie category, Boxleys also went away with the champion award in the speciality cold eating pie category for their ‘Pork, Apple & Stilton Pie’. Another double champion on the night was Lisa Chasey from Gabbotts Farm, who was awarded the accolades for her ‘Red Thai Curry’ and ‘Lamb Meatballs’.  The event also drew a number of talented young butchers. Chris Davies from H Clewlow was crowned Young Sausage Maker for his ‘Pork and Apple Sausage’, while 18 year old butcher Lewis Ross from Fraser Butchers was the creating force behind the Speciality Pork Sausage category champion. The last event is to be held on 1st April at the South of England Showground, so if you would like to enter download an entry form by clicking here or calling Jackie on 01908 844107. Alternatively if you wish to just come along and have a chat with the exhibitors or entrants, then just turn up and if you enter your name into a free prize draw you could be in with a chance of winning a box of wine.

Foodservice Product of the Year
The competition generated 91 entries from 19 butchers and caterers supplying the foodservice industry and following an initial judging round, products from three finalists in each of the six categories of entry were put forward to the grand final held at Butchers’ Hall in London this week.  Grimsby butcher John Pettit & Sons Ltd won the prestigious title of ‘Foodservice Pork Product of the Year’ for the second consecutive year! This time it was a ‘Lincolnshire Yellow Belly Pie’ that really impressed the judges and secured the company’s position as Overall Champion once more.  They also won the ‘Best Cold Eating Product’ category with a ‘Beaujolais Terrine’ while also taking second place with a ‘Bloody Mary Parcel’ in the ‘Best Innovative Pork Product’ category, along with another 11 gold awards and three silver awards for other products entered.  John was delighted with the results and said: “The recipe for our pork pies is based on one that my grandfather was using when he opened the business back in 1892 and the yellow belly pie has evolved from that.

But for the competition we swapped the plain pastry lid for a cheese one”.  “It’s a truly local product, containing Lincolnshire farm assured outdoor reared pork topped with Lincolnshire Smoked Poacher Cheese. The name ‘yellow belly’ actually comes from the Lincolnshire Regiment who wore yellow tunics as part of their uniform – and the regional link along with the matching colour (the cheese gives the pie its yellow colouring) seemed rather apt. 

USA Meat Buying Data
New retail shopper behaviour from October 2008 to January 2009 showed consumers are buying more meat than they were a year ago, including an increase in trading down to more value cuts. The data was presented at the Annual Meat Conference in Denver and shows consumer beliefs and actual shopper behaviour specific to retail meat since the recession has taken a turn for the worse. According to FreshLook data, during 2008 there was a move to cheaper bone-in cuts of pork. This showed in a 6.1% increase for boneless pork chops compared to bone-in pork chops at 14.6% increase and boneless pork roasts went down 13.6% while bone-in roasts increased by 6.6%.  While sales showed a 3% increase, a consumer survey showed shoppers saying they were buying pork less frequently.  A possible reason for the discrepancy was that consumers were only thinking about pork chops and steaks and not including any other pork purchases.
For more info go to http://www.micausa.org/todaysnews

Knowledge Transfer

IPPC Vote
The vote at the EU on extending IPPC has been described as disappointing by BPEX Pig Technologist Nigel Penlington. Referring to the COPA COGECA release on the subject he said it was of concern that they had not commented on the feed processing amendment .There is still more work needed before next vote in June.

The release says: The European Parliament today voted on the report on the recasting of the Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC) directive. Copa and Cogeca are content that some of their key concerns with the directive have been addressed.

Pekka Pesonen, Secretary General of Copa-Cogeca, said “We are pleased that the European Parliament has understood that agricultural and horticultural businesses are unlike other businesses affected by IPPC: many are so small that they simply do not have the capacity to manage the extremely complex IPPC implementation and compliance requirements. It is therefore good that the Parliament has rejected the proposal to lower the rearing capacity thresholds for poultry, which would have imposed disproportionately stringent requirements on this type of farming.

We are also glad that MEPs recognised how the question of manure spreading is already comprehensively covered by the nitrates directive.”

Health and Efficiency
There are still a few places left for Change for Success, the first national knowledge transfer event being run by the BPEX Knowledge Transfer Team. Speakers include farm manager of Alexander and Angell, Roger Meadows, who will talk about how he manages his pig unit with numbers. Dr Emma Baxter, who has undertaken some of the most up-to-date and exciting research in piglet mortality in the past few years. David Hughes, Professor of Food Marketing at Imperial College London, who spoke at this year’s Oxford Farming Conference, will explain the management of his fresh produce and supply chain enterprises and draw comparisons with pig production and an instant ask the audience quiz will identify what measures the group has taken to be biosecure.

The event is on Wednesday, March 18, 2009 at The Haycock, Wansford, PE8 6JA. To book a place please contact Radha Ray on 01908 844105, email: radha.ray@ahdbms.org.uk. Though the event is free, admission is by ticket only. Once you have registered the names of those who wish to attend, places will be reserved. Tickets will be sent in early March. The event starts at 2.00pm, tea and coffee will be available from 1.30pm. The event will close at about 6.30pm with a hot buffet. PIPR points will be awarded for people attending this event.

Action for Productivity Latest
Have you seen the latest Action for Productivity produced by BPEX? The next sheet in the popular series looks at the topic of sow body condition, which is a critical factor affecting health, welfare, productivity and longevity. Maintaining optimum condition within the breeding herd throughout the sow’s lifetime, with minimal fluctuations, will help reproductive performance, production efficiency, strategic culling decisions and mortality rates. Ideally a sow’s body condition should be assessed individually and managed on a continuous basis to maximise her lifetime productivity.

It is important to be able to accurately evaluate sow body condition and to ensure appropriate nutrition is provided to every sow for maintenance, growth, reproduction and lactation, preventing sows becoming either too thin, through having to utilise body reserves, or too fat with excessive weight gain. To download a copy click here, or to request a hard copy email kt@bpex.org.uk.

National News:

Tesco Attacked
Supermarket giant Tesco has been accused of operating a ‘manipulative monopoly’ after it won an appeal against the Competition Commission’s (CC) proposal to introduce a competition test into planning law. The subject was raised in the House of Commons this week by Labour MP Barry Sheerman, who called on the leader of the House, Harriet Harman, to set up a debate on Tesco’s ‘monopoly’.  He said: “Is she aware that many of our towns and cities are being blighted by that manipulative monopoly, and is it not about time that we debated Tesco in this House and introduced legislation to cut its monopoly?”

New KT Manager
A new Knowledge Transfer manager has just been appointed by BPEX to cover the Eastern region. Colin Stone has spent most of his working life at the ‘coalface’ and is currently managing a large operation at Thetford. He has a comprehensive knowledge of breeding and finishing pigs kept in large numbers both indoors and out.

Defra Roadshow
Farmers will have more opportunities to discuss their views, ideas and concerns with Defra staff at this year's Livestock Market roadshow.

The UK-wide tour, beginning on 13 March in Hexham and Exeter, will consist of visits to more than 80 markets throughout the year, giving farmers the chance to talk directly to government representatives about areas that affect the industry.

The topics farmers are likely to raise at the markets are as diverse as Bluetongue, electronic identification of sheep, nitrates, bovine TB, Classical Swine Fever; Avian Influenza and the impact of climate change on agriculture.

For the official schedule of the Livestock Market roadshow, click here.

International News

EU Pig Herd
The December 2008 EU pig survey results have been published and indicate the total EU-27 breeding herd fell by an unprecedented six per cent compared with a year earlier. For more analysis and a link to the figures, click here.

Danish Merger
Danish agriculture organisations Landbrugsraadet (The Danish Agricultural Council) and Dansk Landbrug (Danish Agriculture) will merge with Danish Meat Association (DMA) to create a new organisation representing the industry from ‘farm to fork’.

The main rationale for change is to streamline the operations of the organisations currently representing Danish agriculture and the food industry and, at the same time, delivering a more efficient service for its members.
The new organisation will work closely with both Government and the industry itself to identify solutions to these challenges.  Asger Krogsgaard, Chairman of Danske Slagterier and DMA, explains: “The common challenges the three organisations face means that determining the ideal operating structure for future success of the industry can best be achieved by a single organisation. Furthermore, the merger will result in increased efficiency and lower total costs for all our members.”

Smithfield Results
Smithfield Foods Inc. on Thursday posted a smaller third-quarter loss than was expected as healthy margins on packaged meat helped offset substantial losses on hog production due to record-high feed costs. Its shares soared 18 percent in midday New York Stock Exchange trading, climbing $1.06 to $7.01, as Smithfield predicted it would have a better year in fiscal 2010 after it works through one more quarter of hog production woes.

"Looking forward, I fully expect the fourth quarter to be another difficult quarter with continued substantial losses in hog production.

However, I am reasonably optimistic about fiscal 2010 in spite of the current recession," Smithfield Chief Executive C. Larry Pope said in a news release.

Export Report
Click here for the latest export report.

International Prices
Click here for the latest international prices.