€10 million campaign to boost lamb consumption announced

In the UK, domestic sales of lamb have been in decline
In the UK, domestic sales of lamb have been in decline

A €10 million campaign to boost lamb consumption over the next three years was announced today by the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB), after it successfully bid for European money.

The campaign is a joint venture between France, England and Ireland, and the outcome means that AHDB secured a €10 million campaign for a €1 million investment, to support the lamb sector.

It follows the success of the Tasty Easy Fun lamb campaign, jointly co-funded by the EU to the tune of €7.7 million; run by AHDB in England, Interbev in France, and Bord Bia in Ireland, across six European countries.

The new funding was revealed on Tuesday 23 October in Paris by the Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, Chairman Maurice Huet from Interbev, and AHDB Beef & Lamb Board Chair Adam Quinney.

Mr Quinney said: “Our shared commitment and efforts to tackle the decline in consumption in this sector meant we secured a €10m deal, with an investment of only €1m. This is great news – and great value – for our producers.

“It emphasises the great results that can be achieved working closely with our European partners. Brexit or not, our industry lives on and we need to look for innovative and valuable partnership arrangements to continue to leverage funds to promote lamb as a healthy, versatile and nutritious protein.”

In the UK, domestic sales of lamb have been in decline among young people for some time.

Those over the age of 55 are making up the lion's share of the market, according to figures and over the past year, households across the country have been buying less lamb.

It is why the farming industry has created such initiatives as Love Lamb Week, a week-long initiative that brings together a dedicated week of lamb promotional activity from farmers, butchers and retailers.