Latest news with #meatprocessing
BBC News
26-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Small abattoirs in South East face uncertain future as costs rise
The owner of one of the last remaining small abattoirs in the South East has said he is "incredibly concerned" about the future of the Smith, who runs Down Land Traditional Meats in Henfield, West Sussex, said without more financial support from the government his slaughterhouse may not survive. He said that would impact farmers who choose to supply butchers and farm shops, rather than government said it is "committed to working with the meat processing sector in tackling the challenges they face". The cost of disposing of animal waste has risen to £5,000 a week. "An ageing workforce is also a challenge" Mr Smith said, "the average age of a slaughterman is 63. Young people are not interested in coming in to the industry. "The abattoir is not viable and is making a loss. I'm running a wholesale butchery, that's what's keeping our business alive."We do need support and funding." The number of abattoirs in the UK has fallen from about 2,500 in the 1970s to 203 by operations in England fell from 64 in 2019, to 49 in 2023, with five closing in Edward Perrett from Ditchling, West Sussex, uses Mr Smith's abattoir, selling the meat to customers in his farm shop."To have a short journey to an abattoir is good for animal welfare and it keeps the cost down" he said."If the abattoir closed down it would make life very difficult." Mr Smith has the support of Arundel and South Downs Conservative MP Andrew Griffith said: "This is a vital, sometimes neglected part of our food supply chain. There is a real crisis here."The last government set up some grants but we need even more than that and crucially, less red tape." A spokesman for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said: "Small abattoirs make a vital contribution towards maintaining our resilient food supply chain and provide a competitive route to market for producers of rare and native breeds."We are investing £5 billion into farming, the largest ever budget for sustainable food production, and are unlocking rural growth with reforms to boost farmers' profits."
RNZ News
26-05-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Former Timaru meatworks site sold for undisclosed amount
Photo: RNZ / Nate McKinnon The former Smithfield meat processing plant site in Timaru has been sold, but Alliance Group says the price paid for the land remains a secret. Six hundred meatworkers lost their jobs last year when the farmer-owned red meat cooperative announced it would close the 139-year-old site, which it had owned since 1989. Alliance chief executive Willie Wiese said there was significant interest in the 32-hectare site. "Smithfield has been a well-known part of the Timaru landscape for nearly 140 years. While this marks the end of an era, we're pleased to have concluded the sale and to enable new investment in the site." He confirmed it had now sold, though the price and the purchaser are confidential. Alliance Group reported a loss of $95.8m after tax for the year ended September in its 2024 annual report which included the one-off charge of $51.3m to cover the redundancies and closure of the Smithfield site. Declining sheep processing numbers as a result of land-use change was credited as one of the primary reasons for the site's closure. This had resulted in surplus capacity in its plant network. Alliance Group has six processing plants across the country, including four in the South Island. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
