Sercombe, the chairman of Copa-Cogeca’s Sheepmeat Working Party, warned that Europe needs to quell the flow of lamb imports if the sector is to remain financially fit for service. Speaking at a Brussels summit, Sercombe, who is also chairman of livestock at the National Farmers’ Union, outlined the need to bolster profitability and address lamb imports.
Currently, around 15% of lamb consumed in the EU is imported, primarily from large red meat-producing nations Australia and New Zealand. While not a huge amount, Sercombe warned that this flow had created pressure on domestic production.
“We need to address pressure from imports coming into the EU at the only time that EU sheep producers can make revenue from the market,” said Sercombe.
“To improve the profitability of the sector, we need to improve market transparency and tackle the cost factor. Also, the economic problems faced by livestock farmers hit by attacks from large carnivores need to be equally addressed. Without this production, natural landscapes and rural areas would be abandoned with serious repercussions in the longer term.”
Long, slow decline
So far, lamb has had a mixed year, according to the UK levy board AHDB Beef & Lamb, swinging from slight growth to marginal decline. A minimal fluctuation like this generally means that sales have been steady year-on-year.
Despite the lukewarm performance, Sercombe fears a long, slow decline in consumption across the continent. He’s called for efforts to develop new cooking formats and recipes to boost demand and make lamb more appealing to consumers – a move that has paid dividends for the pork industry following AHDB’s award-winning pulled pork campaign.
The Sheepmeat Working Party also stressed the need to improve pricing transparency and reporting.
Copa-Cogeca’s Sheepmeat Working Party was set up by the European Commission to assess the future of the sector. Recommendations from the reflection group are set to be published by the end of the 2016.