Producers of Lion egg products have highlighted the success of their current marketing campaign, with more food manufacturers than ever specifying British Lion egg products. And Lion producers have told the Ranger that free range eggs will play an important part in any future success of Lion Quality egg products.
Earlier this year the Ranger reported on the growing concerns about what one BFREPA member called a ’yellow river’ of imported egg product of ’dubious’ provenance finding its way into the catering industry in the UK. Whilst EU rules on the labelling of shell eggs ensure they are marked with a code showing where they were produced, how they were produced and who produced them, there is no such legislation for egg products. The British Egg Industry Council has been pressing for some years for specific labelling regulations for egg products and chief executive Mark Williams told us that the BEIC was primarily worried about product from countries outside the EU. Without country of origin labelling it was impossible to tell the difference between EU and non-EU.
There has been some cause for optimism, however. A number of leading British companies have committed to using British Lion egg products, ensuring that they are supporting British farmers, minimising food miles and getting egg products produced to a code of practice which minimises risk to their businesses. The Lion code for Lion Quality egg products offers complete traceability, very strict hygiene controls on processing, pasteurisation and packing and the products undergo independent auditing. Lion egg products producers are hoping to attract others to Lion products as a result of the current marketing campaign.
"We are keen to increase Lion egg products’ share of the market, as imports of egg products have increased in recent years and we feel we have a very strong story to tell about Britishness, quality and why UK manufacturers should use British Lion egg products," said Clive Frampton, the chairman of the British Egg Products Association. "The key principles and strengths of Lion egg products remain the same - the code has in fact grown stronger since its inception, but we need to make sure our customers understand the benefits.
"The consumer and the food industry have become more concerned with issues such as provenance, traceability, food miles, animal welfare and food safety in recent times - all themes that the Lion addresses. It’s a good time for Lion egg products to underline its credentials and we’re keen to take advantage of that.
"In addition, the current economic climate has undoubtedly increased the instance of people eating in and the consumption of ready meals, of which egg products are frequently an integral ingredient. We’re keen to make sure Lion egg products are used in those meals."
He said the main goal of the Lion egg products campaign was to capture a greater percentage of the egg products market for British producers. He said they were hoping to raise awareness of the advantages of using British Lion egg products, emphasising the stringent safety standards, independent auditing, code of practice, minimised food miles, traceability and high quality standards.
"Over the past few years there has been a growing interest in Lion egg products and we believe this will continue to grow. Major retailers have been specifying Lion in shell eggs for some years, following successful Lion marketing campaigns. But increased consumer awareness and interest in the provenance and quality of ingredients has seen the retailers and food manufacturers looking for British egg products," he said.
"Lion egg producers adhere to some of the highest standards in the world and we have to communicate that to consumers, manufacturers and retailers. By getting retailers and manufacturers to specify Lion egg products, we will be giving British producers a new market opportunity for their eggs.
"Lion egg products conform to a strict code of practice, which is independently audited and covers every stage of production from hatcheries to feed, to finished product, ensuring quality control and offering customers peace of mind. We would like to see all egg products reach the exacting standards of the Lion."
Clive Frampton was asked about the importance of free range eggs in the future development of Lion Quality egg products. Given that some major retailers were now committing to using only free range eggs in their own brand manufactured food lines, did he see free range having an increasingly important role to play in Lion Quality egg products?
"Yes. The development of the free range egg products sector is likely to continue in both the short and longer term, with the UK industry in a good position to capitalise on demand. Many large companies, such as Unilever, have followed the lead of retailers, Marks & Spencer and Waitrose for example, in specifying free range eggs in a range of their brands and free range products are forecast to show rapid growth over the next decade."
He said free range was already very important to Lion egg products producers and had grown to approaching a quarter of all sales. Egg products producers were keen to ensure that there was the capacity to continue to meet the demands of its customers and were therefore very keen to see more free range Lion egg producers.
Frampton is confident that the campaign will be successful following research which showed that imports had grown by 40 per cent since 2001 and approaching half of food manufacturers were or could be currently buying imported egg products. The research also showed that more than 80 per cent of consumers felt that using British eggs within manufactured products was important, but were unaware that almost a third of these products contained imported eggs.
The Lion Egg Products campaign has strong support from several leading food companies, the latest, Pork Farms, has become the first to use the Lion logo on pack.
The marketing support campaign includes advertising, direct mail, food manufacturer and retailer briefings and sponsorship of key baking and food manufacturing industry events.
