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NORDIC RED MEAT BUYERS VISIT NORTHERN IRELAND

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Wednesday 9th April 2008

Swedish and Danish beef and lamb foodservice buyers will be in Northern Ireland next week (31 March) for a trade mission which aims to develop new business opportunities for local red meat companies overseas.

Organised by the Livestock and Meat Commission (LMC) in partnership with Invest NI the mission will involve12 Nordic meat buyers visiting Northern Ireland for a busy three days during which they will meet with farmers and beef and sheepmeat processing companies.

Initial trade foundations have been laid through an outward mission by Northern Ireland red meat companies to Sweden and Denmark last November.

A busy schedule has been planned for the buyers which starts off with a visit to a Co Down farm to enable the buyers to gain a detailed insight into how Northern Ireland beef and lamb is produced. This will be followed by a general red meat industry overview presentation from LMC and Invest NI and a 'Meet the Buyer' event which will allow for individual meetings with seven Northern Ireland red meat processing companies.

David Rutledge, LMC Chief Executive, says: “The trade mission will help Northern Ireland beef and lamb processing companies strengthen links with potential customers. We have through the outward mission last year opened doors and now we hope to develop long term trade opportunities in markets overseas.

“These inward trade missions help build prestige and credibility and the interest shown from our red meat industry shows that it is committed to doing business.  I'm proud that LMC can play its part in promoting the Northern Ireland industry from the farm to the fork.”

Maynard Mawhinney, Invest NI's Food Director, says: “Taking part in this visit are some of the most important meat buying organisations in Denmark and Sweden. We'v'e lined up a busy itinerary that will enable them to see and sample the quality of our beef and lamb.

“The visit is a further example of our ongoing support for the red meat industry and an integral part of our strategy to market the 'Good Food is in Our Nature' message to the rest of Europe and further afield. It follows a visit to both markets by a Northern Ireland group of red meat companies for a series of meetings with potential customers.”

Among the companies joining the mission are:  Dunbia, Linden Foods, both Dungannon; ABP, Craigavon; The Foyle Food Group, Londonderry;  Hewitt Meats, Armagh; Doherty & Gray, Ballymena; and C&J Meats, Armagh. 

This inward mission follows similar buying visits last year from Italy and Russia which have so far generated over £6 million in new  business for the Northern Ireland red meat industry.

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Notes to editors

The Nordic and Danish companies and their representatives are as follows: