The move to create a brand for grass-fed Irish beef and a protected geographical indication, better known as a PGI, has so far focused on what type of cattle should be eligible.
Whenever and however that issue gets resolved, the focus then has to be on what value a brand can add for Irish farmers producing the cattle.
Developing a PGI for a high-volume export-based product that supplies supermarket, catering and burger chain customers doesn’t in itself add any particular value to the product.
Scotch beef, for example, has consistently enjoyed a premium over the average British price of around 9p/kg (10c), but this had been the case historically before a PGI was secured in 2004.
Similarly, West Country beef and lamb from the southwest of England has had a PGI since 2014, yet prices in that region are similar to the rest of England and Wales. Wales too has a PGI for beef and lamb and their prices have also remained similar to the British average.
No magic in PGI
Having a PGI is therefore no quick fix for an unsatisfactory beef price, but it does have benefits.
Foremost among these is that it allows State agencies such as Bord Bia to proactively promote a PGI product without falling foul of EU state aid rules.
These rules are currently relaxed during the pandemic, but, ordinarily, ways have to be found around avoiding the use of Irish when promoting Irish food.
A PGI would give a definite advantage and clarity of message in the promotion of Irish beef
Origin Green and the quality scheme has provided wriggle room, but a PGI would give a definite advantage and clarity of message in the promotion of Irish beef.
Building value into a brand is a slow process with no guarantee of success, particularly at a national level for a product 90% of which is exported outside Ireland.
Also, for consumers, beef isn’t the product they buy – it is steaks, mince or roast beef. Delivering a premium on mince, over half the carcase is by having less fat, leaving just the steaks and roasts as the products with real branding potential.
Scotch beef
Looking again at Scotland, it has an immediate advantage in that 40% of its beef production is consumed in Scotland. Of the product that leaves Scotland, the majority is sold in the rest of the UK, with Scotch beef steak meat the premium beef of many top London restaurants.
For a branded Irish beef product to achieve a premium recognition that can ultimately drive a premium price, it has to have a unique place in the market.
This involves carefully choosing retail and food service partners that are committed to the brand and understand the values it is communicating.
There is little point in targeting a brand at a pile-it-high-and-sell-it-cheap outlet, rather it has to focus on delivering quality at a competitive but not particularly cheap price.
Greenfields
There is actually a precedent for this over 30 years ago when Northern Ireland developed the Greenfields beef brand in partnership with the Albert Heijn supermarket group in the Netherlands.
This was built on product integrity, delivered by what was then a unique real-time traceability system for cattle.
It had the perfect mix of levy board, industry and retailer support to build what, for the supermarket chain, was then a unique brand.
By partnering with a major retailer, the brand developed strong consumer recognition, but the BSE beef export ban in 1996 halted the project.
It was subsequently revived in a cross-border partnership using Irish beef, but although it continues to the present time, it never quite recovered the momentum it had in the early years of a farmer, processor and levy board partnership.
MSA Australia
Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA), the levy organisation, has developed a brand around Meat Standards Australia (MSA) which is based on an eating quality guarantee for consumers for cattle carrying the MSA identity.
This is based on a star rating system for carcases and in the most recent prices available, carries a premium the equivalent of 15c/kg for a 320kg MSA steer over the same non-MSA steer (€3.95/kg compared with €3.80/kg).
It has been in place for over 20 years and was strongly supported by the MLA, which is funded by farmer levies of AU$5 (€3.06) per head.
Could it work in Ireland?
PGI and branding in general is most successful when developed by small artisan producers with a limited volume of very desirable product that attracts consumer loyalty.
Such businesses can in time grow into large businesses and indeed become global corporations. In the world of technology, Amazon started life in a family garage, while Facebook was founded by a group of students at university.
It is a huge challenge to retrofit a brand on to a high-volume export-based consumer product that is well established in retail and food service across the UK, EU and increasingly global markets.
It is only when it has an identity with consumers that the potential exists to create value
However, the MSA story in Australia suggests that with time and resources, an identity and value can be created.
Creation of a PGI is the easy part, notwithstanding the difficulty in agreeing what is eligible, but in itself adds no value. That can only be achieved over time by strong promotion of the brand in the markets in which Irish beef is sold.
It is only when it has an identity with consumers that the potential exists to create value and then the challenge is to have a structure that ensures a fair portion of any extra value finds its way to farmers.