Namibia: MEATCO Eyes U.S Market

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Namibia Economist (Windhoek)

12 September 2008
Posted to the web 12 September 2008

Windhoek

Meatco says it is now ready to enter the highly competitive but lucrative US market in October following a successful 16-year period of servicing the European Union.

The US market is the world's biggest and is dominated by such countries as Brazil and if successful, the company would put Namibia on the world map as Africa's only meat producing country to penetrate that high volume and competition-intensive market.

This week, the company launched a new product brand name for its free-range branded beef, Natures Reserve. Free-range applies to meat and meat products processed under natural means without the use of additives or hormones. The launch coincided with the 2009 World Meat Congress that was held in Cape Town, South Africa, this week.

In a satellite broadcast from Cape Town to a media launch at the company headquarters this week, Meatco CEO Kobus du Plessis said his company has managed to sail through the stringent EU inspections for ISO and HACCP certification ever since the company was launched.

"Meatco's plants have never failed an EU inspection since 1992 and have never failed to be ISO and HACCP re-certified since the very first certification in the early 2000s. Meatco is ready for the US' inspection in October 2008 in order to gain access to that market. All our quality systems and physical processes have already been changed to comply with the US requirements," said du Plessis.

He added that, being a world-class producer of meat and meat products, Meatco has become a leader in the export of top quality beef to some of the most discerning markets in the world.

"Our abattoirs are comparable to and, in many instances, surpass the standards of European and American plants," he added.

Apart from the EU and the USA, the company says it hopes to enter more world markets with the introduction of the free-range beef products.

Natures Reserve is an extension of the unique value proposition that Meatco's free-range beef has to offer.

Following the growing global demand for healthier food that is produced naturally and without the use of hormones, the freedom of cattle to express natural behaviour is at the heart of the brand.

"Consumers who demand healthier food are willing to fork out more money for these products that include, but are not limited to, Free Range beef. These customers consider a premium a small price to pay for healthier living, eating a healthier product, helping to save the earth and treating animals kindly," a company spokesperson says.

The free-range method of farming beef complies with internationally accepted animal welfare principles. All Natures Reserve cattle will be fully traceable to the farm of origin by batch and each animal has a unique identification ear tag.

The cattle must be registered with the Farm Assurance Namibia Scheme (FanMeat) and must conform to the husbandry, welfare and overall requirements of the standard.

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