Sept

Vol 26. No. 9 September 2022 Australian Pork Newspaper PO Box 162 Wynnum 4178 Phone (07) 3286 1833 Email ben@collins.media
Celebrity chef Miguel Maestre headlined at BaconFest.
Foodie shares bacon dream
great place to celebrate.” Miguel said the festival was a great opportunity to celebrate the many fami- lies who make a living out of creating “this delicious
Sydney airport biosecurity tour
Point of View
by MARGO ANDRAE CEO
LAST month, Aus- tralian Pork Limited, along with other in- dustry representatives, attended an airside tour of Sydney International Airport, hosted by of- ficials from Australian Border Force and De- partment of Agricul- ture, Fisheries and For- estry.
in place to support our sector.
The tour provided a first-hand experience of biosecurity opera- tions and what happens behind the scenes of Australia’s busiest inter- national airport.
While we can all do our bit for the pork in- dustry, Minister for Ag- riculture, Fisheries and Forestry Murray Watt has announced the first National Biosecurity Strategy, which aims to safeguard Australia’s ability to protect itself from pests and disease.
The primary purpose of the tour – a collabo- ration between industry and government – was to gain a better under- standing of the new bio- security measures im- plemented at the border while in action.
The Federal Govern- ment has amped up border control measures in recent weeks, ensuring the importation of illegal or undeclared frozen, chilled or freeze-dried foods – namely meat and dairy – are prioritised.
place biosecurity as the number one priority for our sector, with ongoing investment being made into safeguarding bio- security resources and management plans for our supply chain through APIQ, ExoFlare and PigPass, ensuring the checks and balances are
We have long advo- cated for improved bio- security measures and, more so now than ever, we value our collabora- tive working relation- ship with government as we track the spread of African swine fever through Europe and into Asia.
With federal, state and territory governments all having well-developed biosecurity response plans in place, APL con- tinues to work closely with the government and wider agricultural sec- tors to ensure disease prevention and surveil- lance are robust and fit for purpose.
Last month, a pas- senger returning from Indonesia was slapped with a hefty fine after an undeclared McDon- ald’s meal was seized by border force officials in Darwin, a few days ear- lier a passenger had de- clared beef products that were seized upon entry into South Australia which were later found to have traces of FMD.
activities are reviewed and heightened accord- ingly.
ders remain at minimal risk of disease outbreak. APL continues to
A core focus of the strategy is enhancing Australia’s biosecurity culture, ensuring that biosecurity is front of mind for all Australians.
Since 2019, the Aus- tralian pork industry has prioritised biosecurity preparedness and re- sponse arrangements for emergency animal dis- eases such as African swine fever and more recently Japanese en- cephalitis.
While travellers are warned, we know cases such as these are not iso- lated incidents.
With both foot and mouth and lumpy skin diseases in neighbouring Indonesia, it is a firm re- minder that collaborative partnerships between government and industry are critical in biosecurity response efforts.
The Sydney Inter- national Airport tour provided reassurance on how these incursions are detected and reported at airport security.
As biosecurity risk profiles in our region change, it is important that Australia’s border
Precautionary meas- ures – such as the em- ploying of 18 new bio- security officers in air- ports and mail centres, the introduction of new targeted diagnostic and surveillance programs, and the enhancement of mail profiling and in- spections – will prove vital in ensuring our bor-
Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Murray Watt announced the first National Biosecurity Strategy, which aims to safeguard Australia’s ability to protect itself from pests and disease.
CHOOSING a favourite flavour to pair with bacon is apparently like picking a favourite child.
“Teaching people how to make recipes in person is my favourite thing as a chef,” Miguel said.
Celebrity Chef Miguel Maestre said bacon is an extremely versatile ingre- dient and could go with almost anything.
“I love regional Aus- tralian shows, even more than other shows on TV.”
pork.”
Miguel ‘the crazy bull’ Maestre is more than keen for a taste of the iconic festival as one of the head- line chefs for the 2022 Kingaroy BaconFest.
Regional Queensland will always have a special place in Miguel’s heart.
As the chef had been dreaming of visiting Ba- conFest for a while, there was no telling what com- bination he would come up with for his cooking dem- onstrations at the festival.
The porky festival has been on Miguel’s mind ever since the pair of chefs caught up at South Bank’s Regional Flavours event and Jason shared about Ba- conFest.
Returning to South Bank’s Regional Flavours event over the past decade was always a nod to the ce- lebrity chef’s first TV gig.
“I want to cook 40 things, but I can only cook three,” he said.
“BaconFest is the name – how could you not go to a festival called BaconFest?” he said.
was a job promoting re- gional Queensland food to an overseas audience – trav- elling around to different locations and cooking with the iconic ingredients for that particular region.
“I could almost say bacon can go with anything.”
“I’m addicted to them.”
The Spanish chef has de- veloped a talent of incorpo- rating Spanish ingredients and cooking styles into his Australian menus.
BaconFest 2019 saw 15,000 people attend, and The Living Room show pre- senter predicts food shows and festivals will become the ‘new tourism’ after COVID-19.
On one occasion, Miguel travelled to Kingaroy to film a cooking segment with the Peanut Van for The Living Room.
He is best known for his co-hosting role on Channel 10’s The Living Room which has led to many other TV appearances in- cluding Miguel’ s Tropical Kitchens, Miguel’ s Feasts and Weekend Feasts.
“This will be a great in- jection of happiness and ‘porkiness’ to this amazing local area,” Miguel said.
He was doing a cooking demonstration for a peanut sundae in the middle of the field, when an extra audi- ence member appeared.
A food festival addiction
“It’s not only about en- couraging people to know more about Kingaroy and bacon, but also to see more of the whole region.
“A massive brown snake came along when I was cooking, and everyone thought I was joking,” Miguel said.
He’s looking forward to sharing his love of cooking with people who are proud of their local produce.
“Australians are in love with these kinds of prod- ucts, so this festival is a
“It was almost like he was watching the show too.”
Miguel first heard about BaconFest through his friend Jason Ford, the South Burnett food ambas- sador.
A Kingaroy encounter
“I’ve been doing festivals such as this all my life.
“It’s a fantastic thing to see people bring their local delicacies,” he said.
Miguel’s Cooking Show
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