The sector’s focus on food quality and safety has enabled Canadian exporters to increase their market share in Japan
By Kate Ayers
Staff Writer
Farms.com
The Canadian pork sector has significantly increased its share of the Japanese market for fresh, chilled pork, Canada Pork International said.
This development is a result of the sector’s focus on food quality and safety, a Farmscape article said today.
“The Japanese market is one of the toughest markets to be in and one of the most lucrative in the world,” Michael Young, vice-president of technical programs and marketing services with Canada Pork International, said in the article.
Originally, the pork sector used the Verified Canadian Pork branding program to identify Canadian pork for the country’s consumers. Now, the Canadian pork sector is using the brand internationally.
The brand represents the best management practices that Canadian pork producers, and the sector, are following to ensure safe and high quality products.
Verified Canadian Pork signifies that producers participate in the Canadian Quality Assurance Program, which is evolving into Canadian Pork Excellence. The brand also assures consumers that traceability is mandatory in Canada and that all Canadian pork is free of growth hormones, the article said.
These aspects of Canadian pork are what Japanese consumers demand, Young said.
“In the last 10 years we’ve focused on switching our volumes from frozen to chilled, which is the most important and the highest quality,” he said.
Since Japan needs to import pork, Canada has been working to expand its market share.
“We started out at 22 per cent of the chilled share,” Young said.
And “as of January, we’re now at 48 per cent of the chilled pork share in Japan. So, growth has been absolutely phenomenal.”
Sask Pork photo