Isaura Daniel*
isaura.daniel@anba.com.br
São Paulo – The southernmost Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul is working to give more quality to its lamb and increase the market for the product. A group of 40 farmers is conducting a pilot programme, coordinated by local organisations, with the objective of selling higher value-added mutton. A total of 5,000 animals, from farms in the southeast, west and centre of the state are part of the project.
In all, 3,000 lambs have already been delivered to a slaughterhouse in the same state and slaughtered. The price paid for the animals was 10% to 20% higher than that of regular meat in the western region of the state. The information was supplied by the regional manager of the Brazilian Micro and Small Business Support Service (Sebrae) for Bovine and Ovine Farming in the Southwest and Western Border of Rio Grande do Sul, Lemar Maciel Rocha.
The programme started being implemented in October this year. In October next year, when the programme will have completed a year of existence, the numbers of participating farmers and of animals involved should have increased. According to Rocha, this year the meat was sold to a company in the same state, but the idea is for it to be traded in the national market, and in other countries as well, in the long term.
Arab countries, for example, are large consumers of mutton. "Should the production increase, then we will be able to negotiate and reach that market," states Rocha. The Sebrae is one of the organisations that carries out the programme, which is part of a greater project entitled "Together to Compete" (Juntos para Competir), alongside the Federation of Agriculture of the State of Rio Grande do Sul (Farsul) and the National Service of Rural Education (Senar).
The product is sold jointly by the farmers. Animals are delivered for slaughter with earrings. Periodic meetings and technical visits are also with up to one year of age, and weighing from 25 to 40 kilograms. The carcass weighs from 13 to 18 kilograms and the fat score ranges from 2.5 to 3. The programme encompasses all types of races, and the animals are fed both native grass and food complements. This, according to Rocha, enables a supply of animals available for slaughter throughout the entire year.
In the beginning of the programme, all of the participating lambs were identified with plates. The farmers involved in the project received previous training from Sebrae, in the management field, and from Senar, in the technical field. The Brazilian Ovine Farmers Association (Arco) is also a partner in the programme, and helped identify the animals.
From each animal sold, the equivalent to one kilogram in live weight goes to a marketing fund, instead of going to the farmer. The same value is discounted from the earnings of the industry that buys the meat, and from retail stores that are partners in the project. The money, according to Rocha, is used for advertising mutton and its quality programme.
Contact
Cordeiro de Qualidade Project
Sebrae Telephone: (+55 55) 3242 4183
E-mail: lemarr@sebrae-rs.com.br
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
