Neigh Horse Meat in D&G - Scotland Food and Drink

Food producers, butchers, independent retailers, farmers? markets, cafes and retailers in Dumfries & Galloway have joined together, supported by Savour the Flavours, to launch a customer information campaign in response to the horse meat scandal.

Date:

Wed, 06 Mar 2013

Source:

Savour the Flavours

The ?Neigh Horse Meat Here? leaflets and posters highlight the importance of Dumfries & Galloway as a livestock rearing region and explain how traceability within Scotland?s meat industry mean that butchers and other meat retailers can provide the full history of each piece of meat they sell.??

The leaflet campaign which launched on Facebook and Twitter last Thursday has already reached nearly 30,000 people, with tweets and facebook posts shared by businesses, politicians, local people and those further afield, all demonstrating their commitment to buying quality local meat.?Local food retailers have already seen changes in shopping habits over the past few weeks, with consumers increasingly look for products with clear provenance. ?

Butchers are reporting increases in sales of around 20%, local meat producers are experiencing a surge in interest and traders at Dumfries Farmers? Market on Sunday reported that it was busier than ever with lots of people attending for the first time, with high numbers also anticipated at next Sunday?s market in Moffat.?

Liz Ramsay, Project Manager of Savour the Flavours, said:

?The horse meat scandal has definitely encouraged people to think more carefully about the meat they are buying, and that is good news for our local producers, many of whom produce some of the best meat in the UK.??

?There has been a general trend over the past few years for people to seek out local, quality food and drink, and we?ve seen that across Dumfries & Galloway with the success of farmers? markets in the region, demand for local produce on menus and an increase in the number of local food retailers right across the region. That trend has definitely accelerated over the past few weeks and it is good to see consumers making positive choices and increasingly appreciating and buying quality local meat from their local butcher, farm shop or farmers? market.???

The horsemeat scandal came to light whilst Savour the Flavours were delivering a series of events designed to encourage retailers and hospitality businesses, such as cafes, restaurants and Bed & Breakfasts, to use more locally produced food.

A series of workshops explained the businesses benefits of using quality produce while a Meet the Producer business to business event at Threave Gardens last month saw more than 20 local food and drink producers gather to showcase their goods to potential local buyers.?

Liz added:

?One hundred people took part in the Recipe for Success workshops and around 90 attended Meet the ?Producer, most of them from businesses who are relatively new to using local food and drink, and the feedback on the range and quality of food and drink now produced in this region has been fantastic. I?m confident that businesses who embrace local produce, especially in the light of the horse meat revelations, will benefit significantly from doing so.??

?The success of the Neigh Horse Meat campaign, particularly on facebook demonstrates the huge interest there is in this topic and I?d urge local people and local businesses to continue supporting it.??

The Neigh Horse Meat logo and leaflet can be found on the Savour the Flavours facebook page or requested from liz@savourtheflavours.co.uk.

Source: http://www.scotlandfoodanddrink.org/news/article-info/4253/neigh-horse-meat-in-dandg-.aspx

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