Page 1 - Australian Pork Newsapaper

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Vol 23. No. 9 September 2019 Australian Pork Newspaper PO Box 387 Cleveland 4163 Phone (07) 3286 1833 Fax (07) 3821 2637 Email ben@porknews.com.au
Princi Smallgoods Deni Sekuloski, Daniel Matliooski and Jessie Pendriegh.
Australia’s best bacon announced
OVER the course of my first month as chief executive officer of A PL, I’ve been con- stantly seeing the evi- dence that biosecurity is a fundamental cor- nerstone of Australia’s pig industry.
Our hard-earned repu- tation for disease-free pork and the rigorous quarantine measures upholding that reputa- tion are both irreplace- able.
The success of Aus- tralian pork, confidence to invest in the future and the livelihoods of the people employed in our industry – many of whom I’ve been fortu- nate to meet in recent weeks – depend on a steadfast defence of our biosecurity status.
That’s why APL em- phatically supported last month’s court deci- sion in Western Aus- tralia, where two men were sent to jail for de- liberately and illegally importing pig semen from Denmark.
The penalty is harsh, especially on a personal level for the families in- volved, but the crime represents a shocking violation of our bio- security laws.
The judgement should act as a strong deterrent for any person or busi- ness tempted to circum- vent Australia’s strict biosecurity laws.
If we are alarmed about the ongoing risk international travellers present when they try to bring pork from over- seas into Australia, we are naturally outraged
Point of View
by MARGO ANDRAE CEO
when members of our own industry knowingly betray fellow producers in the pursuit of an un- fair competitive advan- tage.
Any threat to our bio- security status threatens our standing amongst consumers and our mar- ket access.
That, in turn, threatens the future of Australian producers and the rural communities in which they operate.
Trust amongst pig producers within our industry and the trust other farmers and the community have in our sector, has been tested by the WA case.
Headlines and radio grabs talking about the biosecurity breach have set us back, robbing us of opportunities to con- tinue to tell the compel- ling stories of Austral- ian pork and the Aus- tralians who produce it.
We know the risks that imported fresh pork or genetic material pose in terms of the potential transfer of foreign dis- eases and the health of our national pig herd.
As such, APL sup- ported authorities with
their investigations into these breaches since they were uncovered in 2017.
Of course, since then biosecurity risks for our industry, especially those arising from the global pandemic of Af- rican swine fever, have increased.
A PL is absolutely focussed on prevent- ing African swine fe- ver from reaching our shores.
And we remain alert to the ongoing risks of other potential bio- security risks.
For instance, if foot and mouth disease was spread to Australia, it would be catastrophic for Australia’s entire livestock production system with estimated economic costs of an FMD outbreak in Aus- tralia of $50 billion over 10 years.
In the past fortnight, Federal Agriculture Minister Bridget Mc- Kenzie confirmed that between last November and May, 23 tonnes of pork was seized at Aus- tralian borders.
This volume is the accumulation of more
than 1000 pork items being intercepted every week – the equivalent of four pigs arriving in the country every seven days.
The figures serve as a startling reminder, as does the imported se- men case in WA, that it only takes one reckless action to put our entire industry at risk.
The figures also con- firm that more needs to be done to ensure greater awareness and compliance with our import laws because any breach compromis- es the integrity, safety and value of Australian food production.
On behalf of Austral- ia’s 2500 pig producers and the 36,000 supply chain employees work- ing across our $5.3 bil- lion pork industry, APL continues to work with other agricultural indus- try bodies and govern- ment to strengthen our biosecurity framework.
In that regard, I en- courage producers to make use of a new na- tional biosecurity web- site which has been launched to improve the community’s access to biosecurity information.
The information is tai- lored to suit each visi- tor’s particular interests, so it has relevant in- formation for farmers, as well as other visitors such as online shoppers and international travel- lers.
The website is avail- able here: https://beta. biosecurity.gov.au/.
IN what could be deemed Australia’s tasti- est competition, Princi Smallgoods in Perth have been named as pro- ducing the best bacon in the nation, just in time for International Bacon Day on August 31.
The nationally available full rasher bacon, made from 100 percent Austral- ian pork, was the star of the Australian PorkMark Bacon Awards and beat out over 140 entries from across the country.
Director, Pino Princi says the secret to Princi’s suc- cess is their family recipe and the locally sourced pork they use to produce the winning bacon.
“The story of Princi ba- con began over five dec- ades ago and our recipe has travelled from Italy to Australia. What re- ally sets our bacon apart though, I believe, is the quality of the pork that we begin with,” said Princi.
“Australian bacon is iconic and to be recog- nised for producing the best in the nation – we’re really proud of that.”
Southlands Quality Meats in Canberra took out first place honours in the Short Cut category, followed by Westridge Meats from Too- womba in Queensland in second spot.
Loveday’s Quality Meats on the Gold Coast and Eurostyle Smallgoods in Perth were named equal third with their short cut bacons.
In the Full Rasher cate- gory, Gray’s Modern Meat Mart in Toowoomba was announced second place to Princi Smallgoods and Griffith Butchery in Can- berra, third.
Australian Pork Lim- ited Marketing Commu- nications Manager, Mitch Edwards says the com- petition shines a light on smallgoods makers who are using 100 percent Australian pork to pro- duce their bacon, which is great news for both pig farmers and bacon-lovers.
“Bacon is an Aus- sie household staple but there’s a high chance the family favourite that shoppers are selecting isn’t made with Austral-
ian pork”, said Edwards. “Many people are sur- prised to learn that 80 percent of bacon sold in Australia is made using imported pork. Aussie ba- con meets our high safety standards and celebrates fresh, quality, local ingre-
dients.
“If you want to support
Aussie pig farmers, by buying bacon made from 100 percent Australian pork, look for either the pink Australian Pork logo or make sure the bar chart on the country of origin label has a percentage of over 90 percent of Aus- tralian ingredients.”
The process behind naming these bacons as Australia’s best was fiercely contested, not only by the entrants, but with a spot on the judging panel being a hot ticket.
All entries were judged in their raw and cooked form by a panel of four passionate bacon con- noisseurs, Fleischmeister Horst Schurger, chefs Simon Bestley, Adam Moore and Paul McDon- ald.
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