Acknowledged by industry leaders as a significant step towards maintaining and improving consumer confidence in UK meat production, the project is being championed as an example of meat chain co-operation.  As well as covering the cost of development and accreditation, Fabra has given a 12-month commitment to fund individual accreditation for everyone taking part, ensuring that abattoirs, butchers and meat processors feel the benefit of a better trained, more knowledgeable and more committed workforce without having to finance the investment.

Speaking at the launch Michael Seals, chairman of AHWBE, was keen to promote earned recognition and shared responsibility.  “Promoting compliance and increasing skills and understanding through schemes such as Fabra’s Education and Training initiative enables enforcement and regulatory bodies such as the AHVLA to take a risk-based approach, prioritising effort and precious resources,” he said.

His comments bring into sharp focus Fabra’s commitment to drive towards a regulatory environment which it says better reflects the economic, environmental and nutritional value of the products it’s members derive from animal by-products.

Fabra chief executive, Stephen Woodgate explained “inefficiencies from the mis-sorting of animal by-products increase the financial and environmental cost of meat production.  The value of our members products’ is directly related to the category of raw materials; the processing of inputs which were fit for human consumption at the point of slaughter result in products that have a higher value than those which weren’t.  By investing in our upstream food chain partners and preventing category 3 raw material from being unnecessarily downgraded, we can maximise the value of meat and reduce its environmental costs.”

His message was endorsed by Alick Simmons, Deputy Chief Veterinary Officer who congratulated Fabra on seizing the initiative and endorsed its approach to adding value to the products and services of the wider industry.

Continuing to explore the impacts of the initiative on the meat industry, Richard Griffiths provided insight gained from experience in the poultry sector.  Attracting people to this industry is a challenge which can be addressed by showing that those starting on the shop floor are not just starting a job but embarking upon a career.  For the long-term progression of the industry retaining and developing the talent pool is crucial.

In order to meet the need of this diverse and multi lingual workforce Fabra joined forces with training specialists Beacon Synergy and developed training materials which use distinct characters to clearly explain the roles of the different organisations that are involved in the handling and inspection of animal by-products from the slaughter line to rendering plant. “The language has been kept very simple allowing it to be easily translated. A modular format means it can be viewed in bite-sized chunks and free online access makes training very flexible for employers and employees,” says Mr Woodgate.

Tailoring the training modules to meet the needs of abattoir, butchers and food processing owners has been a challenge which industry leaders acknowledge Fabra has successfully achieved. “The training modules cover the processes that underpin traceability and biosecurity,” says Mr Woodgate. “Best practice procedures for identifying, sorting, staining, labelling and transporting different categories of animal by-products are all clearly explained within the programme.”

Alongside the industry-specific training Fabra has launched a suite of educational videos designed to inform the general public which aim to develop greater understanding of the important role of animal by-product processing in the wider meat chain.

To view the free online training materials or find out more about Fabra’s Education and Training initiative visit www.fabraeducation.co.uk.

“At a time when there is a 70% protein deficit in Europe and Government is seeking to lower the country’s carbon footprint through the use of renewables, our industry is playing a vital role,” explains Fabra chief executive Stephen Woodgate.

“We’re working closely with the European Union, the UK government and our food chain partners on issues such as the recovery of energy from food residues, use of tallow as a fuel, and the potential use of processed animal protein in selected rations for food producing animals.  We’re also actively engaged in research to establish the impact of rendering on the carbon cost of food production under the Paul Foxcroft Scholarship Scheme at Harper Adams University.

“Taking the impact of rendering into account has the potential to significantly lower the carbon footprint of meat production,” according to Mr Woodgate.   “But that’s not the only way in which we can benefit our food chain partners.  We’ve invested heavily in an education programme to be launched in 2012 designed to help the meat industry maximises the economic, nutritional and environmental value of its by-products.”

The organisation also revealed that it has been working closely with Government on the latest control measures for notifiable diseases, confirming that the industry remains at the heart of plans to handle, for example, any future outbreak of foot and mouth disease.

Leading food waste recycler, PDM Group, is strengthening its relationship with SARIA Bio-Industries, one of Europe’s leading producers of high quality proteins and fats from animal by-products. Both businesses have committed to expanding the network of food chain by-products recycling solutions, with a particular focus on the ReFood brand, across the UK.

The two companies have signed a deal which sees SARIA acquire a majority stake in the Doncaster-based PDM Group. PDM’s management team is very positive this investment will enable the company to expand its nationwide portfolio of AD, biomass-to-energy and rendering facilities and look at new business development opportunities.

PDM and SARIA have worked in partnership for a number of years, delivering the UK’s first ReFood AD plant, which officially opened in Doncaster on Sept 9th. With investment from the German-based SARIA Group, PDM will be able to fast-track its plans to create a national network of ReFood plants providing local, secure and sustainable solutions for food waste.

Andrew Smith, chief executive of PDM, comments: “We’re delighted to have strengthened our relationship with SARIA. Our two businesses complement each other, and the shared expertise means we have the potential to develop an industry- leading offer to food chain waste management. As a result, PDM will continue to set the benchmark in how to maximise food chain by-products as a resource and help the UK eradicate food waste from landfill by leading the sector in providing the infrastructure, capacity and demand for recycling across the food chain.”

Franz-Bernhard Thier, member of the board of SARIA and director of PDM adds: “As a result of this cooperation we are able to share knowledge and technology to produce new products from animal by-products and commercial food waste in an effective and efficient manner.”

The WRO meeting was held in conjunction with the Australian Renderers Association 11^th International Symposium in Sydney Australia.

Kaluzny succeeds Alan von Tunzelman from New Zealand.  He is past chairman of the National Renderers Association and the Fats and Proteins Research Foundation and is currently Vice President of Kaluzny Bros., Inc. of Joliet, Illinois.

Stephen Woodgate has a BSc in applied Biology.  He is the Chief Executive of Fabra  – the Foodchain and Biomass Renewable Association in the UK  and is a member of the executive board of EFPRA, the association representing by-product processors in Europe.

Tim Juzefowicz is the second term Vice President of the Australian Renderers Association and Technical Manager of 15 years rendering experience at BPL Melbourne Pty Ltd, trading as Baiada Proteins.  He is a qualified Industrial Chemist and has a Masters in Engineering majoring in quality management.

The WRO serves as a vehicle for education and information exchange between renderers and associated interests from different countries and associations. The WRO also serves as a vehicle to express positions to governments and other world organizations such as the WTO, the OIE, Codex Alimentarius and the IFIF. Its members meet regularly during the annual meetings of the EFPRA, NRA and the Australian Renderers Association.

WRO membership includes renderer organizations and interests from Argentina, Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, India, Israel, Italy, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, The Netherlands, United Kingdom, United States and Venezuela.

The next annual meeting of the WRO will be June 7, 2012, at the EFPRA annual meeting at Dubrovnik, Croatia.

How meat producers and processors can harness the green energy derived from their “waste products” is the focus of the first presentation, whilst the benefits of carbon footprinting the fifth quarter is the primary topic of the second.

“The fifth quarter is already lowering the carbon cost of meat,” says Stephen Woodgate, Chief Executive of Fabra.  “Each and every year our members service the meat industry by processing over a million tonnes of animal by-products, creating financially and environmentally valuable products.

“Yet this is rarely taken into account by those calculating the carbon cost meat; a fact which has significant impacts for the whole industry given that headlines and initiatives such as ‘meat free-Mondays’ often use these misleading statistics.

“Understanding how carbon costs are calculated, the impact that they can have and the importance of including the fifth quarter is vital to the long-term sustainability of the industry,” he says.

“By joining the links of the meat chain, we can present an accurate carbon cost of meat based products.  Initial results of the latest research shows that this is likely to be significantly lower than those splashed across the pages of the newspapers, helping concerned consumers to eat steak guilt free.”

Whilst Mr Woodgate considers the base line calculations and their impact on consumer demand, Philip Simpson, commercial director at PDM Group, assesses which green disposal options attract the greatest financial benefits.

“Many meat producers and processors still perceived their by-products as “waste”, yet this can be the fuel that generates renewable energy to earn green benefits such as ROCs and feed-in tariffs,” says Mr Simpson.

“Whether it is from CHP combustion, anaerobic digestion or rendering, the value of green energy is ever increasing.  Demanded by legislators and consumers, it can have a positive effect directly and indirectly on the cost and desirability of meat products.”

Group Environment Manager Bob Carss explains how VION Food Group systems harness the energy locked in its meat by-products and other ingredients:  “We have a whole-system approach and strive to extract the full potential of products which others might consider to be waste.  From heat and electricity derived through anaerobic digestion, to the production of biodiesel, by-products have a crucially important part to play in our production systems.

“In recent years we have carefully assessed our carbon footprint.  Not only is it fundamentally important to our customers, it is also integral to plans for lowering the carbon footprint of the meat industry as a whole.”

The food processing sector attaches little or no commercial value to a large proportion of livestock carcasses.  For example, as much as a quarter of a chicken carcass and half of a cattle carcass is considered to be by-product.  Bob Carss presentation focuses on how commercial operators can benefit by attaching greater value to these by-products.

Stephen Woodgate, chief executive of the by-product processing industry body Fabra, looks at how by-products are processed, and explores the resulting products, their uses, and the carbon values attached to them.

“Fabra members are responsible for the majority of UK meat by-product processing, producing rendered animal fats, processed animal protein and other products valued for use in human food, animal feeds, petfood and utilised by the oleochemical, pharmaceutical, energy and construction industries.

“Work to carbon footprint these processes and products is being completed and we can, for the first time, begin to explore how the true value of animal by-products can best be exploited throughout the entire food chain.”

MEATUP is the brand new biennial show for the UK meat industry which takes place at the Stoneleigh Park complex in Warwickshire over the two days on 21st and 22nd June 2011. MEATUP is the only show of its type serving the UK market.

Organised by the experienced team at YPL Exhibitions and backed by the main media sponsor Meat Management magazine, the exhibition will be the ‘meeting place’ for the UK industry where good business can and will be done. The show will also feature major competitions together with craft demonstrations and there will be something of interest for everyone, from the smallest butcher right up to the largest processor or retailer.

MEATUP offers a really cost effective way of meeting key buyers face to face together with other important contacts throughout the meat business – itself a major £20 billion industry. No beverages, no seafood, no dairy, in fact nothing but a clear focus on all aspects of the meat and poultry sectors.

The find out more about MeatUp 2011 visit www.meatup.co.uk

We’d like to see as many of the Fabra members there as possible so if you’re interested in coming along then you can register by clicking HERE and filling in the form.

We look forward to seeing you at Meat Up, look for us on stand 246.