Welsh meat wins €4.1m funding boost
The scheme, launched by Hybu Cig Cymru - Meat Promotion Wales (HCC), will see €4.1m (£3.214m) invested over the next three years to promote the qualities of Welsh Beef and Welsh Lamb, which have been awarded Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) status.
The scheme was approved by the EU Commission to promote the qualities of PGI, using HCC’s products as examples, across the German and Italian markets, while a similar campaign in Sweden and Denmark will feature only PGI Welsh Lamb. It will feature a combination of print and digital advertising, posters and recipe booklets and attendance at trade and consumer food shows.
The campaign is the second time in six years that HCC has won European funding – the first being a €4m campaign to promote PGI Welsh Lamb in the UK, France, Germany and Italy – and will bring the total spent on promotion of this kind to €8.1m between 2011 and 2018.
Gwyn Howells, HCC chief executive, said: "This is excellent news for the Welsh red meat industry. This €4.1m funding will provide a significant boost for our efforts to raise awareness of the high standards that Welsh Lamb and Welsh Beef have to achieve in order to qualify for PGI status.
"It is particularly gratifying to know that our stewardship of the previous scheme has been judged to be a success by the European Commission – so much so that they have awarded us another €4m to continue our work."
The European Commission will contribute half the cost of the campaign, with HCC contributing the other half.
HCC’s market development manager Laura Pickup said: "We have chosen these countries for this intensive marketing drive because a distribution network for Welsh Lamb or Welsh Beef already exists. This programme provides us with the opportunity to further develop that trade by emphasising the benefits of PGI to both retailers and consumers in those countries."
