Britain's red meat levy ring-fenced fund will increase from £2m to £3.5m next year, after agreement was reached between the boards in Wales, Scotland and England.
For the last two years, the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB), Hybu Cig Cymru (HCC) and Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) have decided on a collaborative programme of activities to support the meat industry.
This includes jointly promoting British meat overseas and work to underpin the nutritional benefits of red meat.
It has been confirmed today (25 February) the size of the overall fund will increase from £2m to £3.5m from 1 April 2020.
The additional investment will focus particularly on bolstering the reputation of meat with consumers, addressing misconceptions and promoting the benefits of sustainable meat consumption.
In a joint statement, the three boards said: “The current ring-fenced fund has been a fantastic opportunity for us to work more closely together to further the interests of the British meat sector.
"Whilst this remains an interim step before redistribution of levies takes place, we believe the time is right to strengthen this collaboration and increase the overall investment made in the joint fund for the next 12 months.
“The industry is under tremendous pressure and we feel we can make even bigger progress on market development and export work, to find new markets for our products overseas, and the ongoing reputation work to promote all that is good and defend the industry from myths and misinformation.”
Wales' rural affairs minister, Lesley Griffiths welcomed the announcement, calling it 'good news' for the Welsh red meat industry.
"Increasing the fund from £2 to £3.5m will provide more opportunities to promote world class PGI Welsh Lamb and Beef at home and overseas," she said.
"This is an excellent example of collaborative working that will deliver positive results for Wales’ red meat industry. I am grateful to HCC for the role they have played in reaching this agreement with the UK’s other Red Meat Levy boards.”
