Bigger lambs need for Japan: board

Press, 25 October 1985, Page 24

Bigger lambs need for Japan: board

The Meat Board needs bigger lambs to succeed in selling chilled lamb to Japan at premium prices, says the board’s Asian director, Mr Graeme Harrison.

Mr Harrison said the board wanted lambs of 16kg and up, and also needed some of 20kg for cuts for the Japanese catering industry. “Most New Zealand carcases are only about 14kg. This is too small. We are going back to the producers to try to get them to agree to produce a larger lamb. “The emphasis now is on heavyweight lambs and boneless rather than bone-in cuts,” Mr Harrison said. The Meat Board believeis Japan could overtake Britain as New Zealand’s biggest market for chilled lamb by the end of next year. This year Britain is expected to take about 1000 tonnes of New Zealand chilled lamb.

Airfreighted and seafreighted chilled lamb commanded much higher Sis than frozen lamb, ed lamb prices were not that much lower than prices paid for beef. Chilled lamb also had much less of the odour that some Japanese find offensive with frozen lamb, Mr Harrison said.

According to a survey by the Tokyo meat trade newspaper, /Shokuniku Tsushin,” as at X’ly nearly 500 Japan-

ese stores stocked Australian chilled lamb while about 420 sold the New Zealand product. The newspaper said that major chain stores had expanded shelf space for chilled lamb. Mr Harrison admitted New Zealand was about “three years behind” Australia in the chilled lamb trade but noted that Australia had become “sensitive” to new New Zealand competition. Australia had taken out a lot of advertising and launched a number of promotions since New Zealand began its campaign. “We can outdo Australia but we have to work very hard to convince Japanese retailers that lamb should be positioned in a different price bracket. Up to now retailers have had the wrong product,” Mr Harrison said.

The board, through Japan New Zealand Lamb Marketing, Ltd, was also promoting a number of new lamb products in Japan. Among these were boneless leg steak and lamb cutlets, both vacuum packed. The cutlets were still being produced in Japan but production of the steaks had been moved to New Zealand.

A major Japanese meat processor, Ito Ham, had begun producing New Zealand lamb nuggets in frozen packs for caterers. - —New Zealand Japan Ows