'Food Fortress' strengthens Northern Irish meat provenance

The provenance and high levels of traceability that underpin Northern Irish food especially red meat and poultry have been further enhanced by scheme developed by government and industry.

The new unique 'Food Fortress Feed Materials Scheme' has been developed to monitor the quality and safety of imported animal feed and thereby to enhance assurance in the Northern Irish supply chain.

The new scheme will enable the agri-food industry to promote high levels of traceability, quality assured produce to both new and existing customers with even greater confidence.

The scheme, which will come into operation early next year, is being backed by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, the Livestock and Meat Commission and the Grain Trade Association in Northern Ireland.

The scheme will involve the world leading Global Food Safety Unit at Queen's University, Belfast in using cutting-edge technologies and innovative risk assessment practices to sample strategically and test animal feed and, therefore, to minimise the risk of contamination in the supply chain.

The initiative will strengthen the robust food production systems and processes that currently exist in Northern Ireland.

The beef and sheep sector, among the most important exporter, will be the first to implement the new initiative. The sector currently contributes over £1 billion annually, exports products worldwide and is continuing to grow steadily. Several of the region's biggest private companies are in red meat and sheep.

The new scheme will also build on the region's Farm Quality Assurance Scheme that underpins beef and sheep production in Northern Ireland, a sector that is already regarded as offering quality, safe, wholesome and nutritious meat produced to the highest animal husbandry and processing standards.

The industry is currently being briefed about the scheme, which also carries forward recommendations for the faster growth of this important industry set in the Going for Growth - Invest in Success action plan for the development of the food industry tabled last May by the Agri-Food Strategy Board, a body involving government and the private sector.