Red Meat Industry Forum - a good return on investment
03/11/05

THE Red Meat Industry Forum (RMIF) programme's benefits so far would translate to income improvements of between £500 and £800 million a year if applied to a critical mass of the industry.

This was one of the findings of an independent evaluation carried out by Dr Andrew Fearne of Imperial College London revealed at the major RMIF conference in London on 2 November.

Dr Fearne shared his findings with almost 400 delegates from right across the red meat supply chain.

Peter Barr, Chairman, RMIF and MLC said: "Many companies have already experienced the excellent benefits of RMIF programmes but the industry needs to take up the challenge further. The time for talk has now gone."

Programmes on offer to ensure red meat businesses tap into this figure include:

* RMIF Business Clubs, which are contributing towards productivity improvements for livestock producers of between 10 - 20% and net profit increases of 5 - 15% for those who have acted on the advice given.

* Post-farm gate activity, which if applied to a critical mass of the industry, could reduce operating costs by up to £98 million and reduce waste by up to £400 million.

* RMIF Whole Chain work, which aims to provide all businesses within the supply chain with financial benefit from working together more closely.

* A Senior Executive Programme involving workshops to ensure that companies keep ahead of the game in terms of business improvement techniques and a groundbreaking course to engage younger industry leaders.

* An international competitiveness programme to measure the competitiveness of the UK industry against major EU and non-EU supplying countries. The end product is to ensure that major lessons are learned for the UK industry.

About the RMIF

"The RMIF is determined to help the British red meat industry recapture - and maintain - a leading position in the market place.
 
The RMIF believes that the spotlight must fall on red meat businesses in their entirety, not just on individual producers, in order to enable whole supply chains to achieve world-class status - and to provide an outstanding example of efficiency and quality with continuous business improvement.
 
Crucial to achieving these industry-wide benefits is the inclusion of the entire supply chain."

When The Going Gets Tough