N&N Agriculture head makes UK trip to learn about cage-free egg production

Source: HSI. Ma (left) and Gordon Alexander, Manager at Heal Eggs (right).

Humane Society International (HSI), a global animal protection organisation, has organised a trip to Europe to show Asian farmers more about cage-free egg production.

Ma Chin Chew, CEO of N&N Agriculture, which produces halal egg products, joined other farmers from Asia at Heal Eggs, an egg farm in Shrewsbury, the UK, where he learned about new types of cage-free housing systems, techniques and procedures for managing hens in cage-free environments, and the benefits of such systems for hen welfare.

Heal Farms has been awarded the RSPCA Assured certification, which prohibits the use of cages and provides guidelines for hen health, diet, environment and care. RSPCA operates this ethical food label dedicated to farm animal welfare.

As part of HSI’s farm animal protection campaign, the organisation helps the food industry adopt higher standards for the care of animals in farms, including by connecting companies like N&N Agriculture with the technical training and resources they need to transition to cage-free egg production.

Around the world, including in Asia, the majority of egg-laying hens spend nearly their entire lives confined in battery cages too small for the birds to spread their wings, let alone express natural behaviours like perching, dust bathing, and laying eggs in nests. This practice is changing in response to growing consumer concerns about the treatment of animals raised for food, make it increasingly clear the future of egg production is cage-free.

According to HSI dozens of countries have national or local restrictions on the use of battery cages, and a growing number of multinational companies have pledged to eliminate eggs from caged hens from their supply chains globally, including in Asia, by 2025. Last month, hospitality company The Lo and Behold Group became the first Asian company to adopt a cage-free egg policy.

Dawn Neo, Corporate Outreach manager for HSI Farm Animals in Asia, said: “The cage-free movement has already begun to take root in Asia. We look forward to helping food companies and egg producers meet consumer expectations for eggs produced with higher standards for animal welfare.”

Ma said: “Asian consumers are increasingly concerned about the treatment of animals used for meat and eggs. We are thankful to Heal Eggs for sharing their expertise on cage-free housing with us.”
RSPCA Senior Scientific Officer Mia Fernyhough said: "We are delighted to support HSI with this initiative, and that this meeting was a success. It's fantastic that Mr Ma Chin Chew made
this journey to see firsthand the RSPCA's higher welfare standards in practice at Heal Farms. We hope that his visit to an RSPCA Assured farm proved informative and insightful for his future ventures with his own business.”

RSPCA Head of international, Paul Littlefair said: “In recent years we have seen a surge in interest particularly from East Asia in the RSPCA Assured scheme, and members have welcomed on their farms officials, scientists and producers from Korea, Japan, Taiwan and (mainland) China, so we are especially pleased that Heal Farms are now able to show best practice to HSI's partners in Singapore.”

Tony Heal, owner of Heal Farms said: “At Heal Farms, we have invested in the latest technology and equipment to enhance the management and welfare of our birds. We are delighted to have the opportunity to share our knowledge and experience with other producers wishing to make the switch to higher welfare free-range egg production.”

Inaugural Mahaseel Festival in Doha focuses on fresh agricultural produce, livestock

Source Cultural Village Foundation-Katara. The Mahaseel Festival.

The first edition of the Mahaseel Festival hosted by the Cultural Village Foundation-Katara in collaboration with the Qatari Agricultural Department at the Ministry of Municipality and Environment was launched on January 7. The new initiative stems from Katara's vision of serving the community, by working with and supporting local businesses, institutions and charities.

The Mahaseel Festival features agricultural produce and livestock as well as competitions, exhibitions and interactive events to promote public awareness and interest in Qatari food produce. Restaurants at the cultural village will support the venture by sourcing all their fresh produce from participating outlets at the festival.

GM, Cultural Village Foundation-Katara, HE Dr Khalid bin Ibrahim Al-Sulaiti said, "The festival will continue to host 22 sales outlets and 12 mobile vending vehicles which will offer visitors the best quality of produce including fruits, vegetables, honey, poultry and dairy products in addition to flowers."

In addition to these events, the festival features a date palm exhibition, Nakheel, to raise public interest about the natural life cycle of the palm tree, and to increase awareness of its health and commercial benefits. The festival also elaborates on the significance of the palm tree in the Quran.
In order to avoid undue wastage of fresh produce, Katara coordinates with various charitable organisations to ensure that any leftover produce at the end of each day is distributed to needy families in the country.

Interested?

The festival continues every weekend from 1pm to 2am until May 1 in Katara's southern area (Parking Area 05). Entry is free.

Participate in the associated sketching competition

PwC launches food supply and integrity services in Singapore

Source: PwC website.

PwC Singapore is marking World Food Day by announcing the establishment of its Food Supply and Integrity Services business to help food companies, investors and governments tackle food security, safety and quality concerns.

The Food Supply and Integrity service offering includes corporate governance, supply chain integrity, fraud prevention, traceability, crisis management, regulatory compliance, and transaction services. While PwC does not mention it, these or similar services could conceivably be extended to checking if other meats have been contaminated with traces of pork, or creating a halal assurance programme for food companies.

In line with the theme of this year's World Food Day, Social Protection and agriculture: breaking the cycle of rural poverty, PwC believes that ensuring food availability, accessibility and affordability for the world’s population is a shared responsibility and needs to be taken on by industry, government and service organisations.

Governments are growing their regulatory efforts through increased oversight and sanctions in an attempt to improve food safety to give people greater trust in their food. Given the recent food failures, consumers are also demanding greater transparency on food traceability and the overall food production process. In an accompanying report, Food trust: From compliance to competitive advantage, PwC states: 'Traceability and the demand for more
choice, such as organic and halal products, are creating new standards for compliance, testing and certification across the world."

Julia Leong, Food Supply and Integrity Services Leader, PwC Singapore comments: “As supply chains become increasingly complex, it poses a growing problem across industries, and unfortunately food is an area where supply chain failures can be fatal. Consumers want assurance and transparency from food companies and no longer want to rely on just the brand. The entire food supply chain from farm to fork must be well-controlled in order to be resilient against unforeseen events such as food fraud, intentional contamination and deliberate tampering.”

PwC Singapore is offering its Food Supply and Integrity Services through a strategic alliance with AsureQuality, a New Zealand government-owned food safety and biosecurity company. AsureQuality has knowledge of Islamic requirements, and includes halal slaughter training and auditing services in its portfolio.

“By combining PwC’s in-depth assurance and business advisory capabilities, with AsureQuality's deep industry and food safety technical knowledge, we aim to provide the market with solutions that enhance value through brand building and margin improvement while safeguarding safety and quality in a sustainable manner.” said Dean Nikora, Group Director, Global Food Trust Alliance of AsureQuality Singapore.

Building trust in food is among the most complex problems that business and society must solve, but it is also one of the greatest opportunities for food companies that get it right. A well-coordinated and strategic approach is needed in order to take a holistic view to identify, monitor and mitigate weak links in the food supply chain.

Yeoh Oon Jin, Chairman, PwC Singapore concludes: "Food is an industry where customer trust and confidence is paramount. It’s a necessity of life, and its quality and safety should not be compromised. Singapore is strategically placed as a regional hub for many food companies. Coupled with Singapore's global standing as a country that upholds very high food safety standards, we see ourselves as a centre of excellence in the region to help in the food trust agenda. We are passionate about being able to help to improve trust in food.”

PwC is offering its food supply and integrity services in Singapore, China and New Zealand through an alliance with AsureQuality. AsureQuality also has a world-class laboratory in Singapore. Elsewhere, PwC and AsureQuality are working together to offer their combined services to government and food company clients.

Some of the cases PwC has worked on include when horsemeat was passed off as beef and creating a dairy farm assurance programme for Mengnin Dairy Company in China.

Interested?

Download the report Food trust: From compliance to competitive advantage which discusses the background to increasing regulatory changes impacting the global food industry, along with the impacts of the US Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) for retail and consumer goods companies worldwide.