EBLEX’s efforts to help average-performing producers bridge the gap to become top producers through its £3.1 million investment in research and development and knowledge transfer, could be worth £217 million to the English beef and sheep industry.
This is one of the headline figures in EBLEX’s 2013/14 Annual Review, which has just been published. The report looks at how EBLEX’s levy income has been spent on EBLEX’s strategic objectives of improving efficiency and adding value, as well as giving an overview of the contribution made by the services it provides to the industry, such as communications and market information.
Key milestones achieved with levy income during the 2013/14 financial year include the opening of further new export markets for UK beef and lamb as well as the emergence of Hong Kong as an important outlet. EBLEX’s television advertising campaign was renewed following its success the previous year and there continued to be heavy investment in research projects to help on-farm efficiency, communicated through the Better Returns Programme (BRP). In addition, AHDB central support costs continue to be reduced, from 9.86 per cent of levy income in 2012/13 to 8.9 per cent in 2013/14.
Other figures highlighted in the report include:
£26 of media coverage generated for every £1 spent on our quarterly Simply recipe booklets. Overall the campaign achieved 131 pieces of coverage during the year
£67m potential growth in annual lamb retail sales and £11.3m potential growth in annual beef retail sales as a result of the £55,000 invested by our marketing team in new cut development
£9.4m increase in the value of sheep meat exports to non-EU markets in 2013. We invested £432,000 in our ongoing campaign to open additional non-EU export markets
EBLEX sector director Nick Allen said: “One of our major challenges within EBLEX is demonstrating to levy payers the wide range of work we do on their behalf, as much of it isn’t visible to the average producer.
“The annual review, in addition to our numerous interactions with farmers around the country, provides an effective way of doing this.
“I’d encourage every levy payer to read it – I’m sure they will find it a useful guide to how we are investing levy money on behalf of the sector.”
Copies of the annual review will be sent to all members of the EBLEX BRP with the autumn bulletin. A pdf is available online in the corporate publications section of www.eblex.org.uk, or additional hard copies can be requested by calling 0870 242 1394.
