World meat industry news

The proposal of the Vita Animal Rights Center to introduce a tax on meat in Russia is completely out of touch with reality and plays into the hands of Russia's competitors in the world meat market, Sergei Yushin, head of the National Meat Association (NMA), told Interfax.

He commented on the message that the Center had sent a letter to the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade with a proposal to introduce special rules for meat producers, including additional taxes. 

At the same time, with reference to the executive director of the Union of Plant Based Products Producers Valeria Rodina, the publication writes that the meat industry creates an additional hydrocarbon footprint, and livestock enterprises pollute the atmosphere more than transport.

"The proposal to introduce a tax on meat at a time when the Russian government and tens of millions of our fellow citizens are concerned about the rise in food prices is absolutely divorced from reality," Yushin stressed. In South America, meat production is constantly growing, and the livestock population is several times or even tens of times larger than in Russia, and they are not going to reduce it yet. Russia, because in a number of importing countries we have seriously pressed foreign giants, abandoned large-scale imports, and they hardly like it. "

According to Yushin, "meat producers and farmers around the world are already accustomed to regular and often aggressive attacks on the industry from extremely small, but still respected by us representatives of humanity, who for one reason or another have given up eating meat." At the same time, he recalled that in different countries, on average, only 2% to 10% of the population consider themselves to be vegetarians, and their share is practically not growing.

“However, they are confident that they can, with persistence worthy of other application, impose their views on more than 7 billion other inhabitants of the planet. At the same time, they do not hesitate to mislead consumers by providing sometimes inaccurate, one-sided or unverified information, including contradicting scientific views and all civilizational experience, "he said & also mentioned that these statements may be behind the business interests of specific companies involved in the production of alternative products.

“The Union of Plant Based Producers seems to be acting on the principle 'to swim out, you have to drown someone else,'” Yushin said. “The first discrepancy in their statement is the share of livestock in greenhouse gas emissions. According to Climate Watch, in 2016 livestock was resposible only for 5.8% of greenhouse gas emissions, and it does not take into account that pastures and arable lands have absorbing effects. Transport accounts for 16.2% of emissions. "

“Opponents of animal husbandry talk about animal rights, but it is not clear what rights they are specifically talking about: today's rules for raising animals, as well as modern technologies in animal husbandry provide comfortable conditions for keeping,” Yushin said. “This does not mean that every problem in our industry has already been resolved, but in general it is in the interests of farmers to take care of the animals as much as possible throughout their life. This is beneficial, first of all, from an economic point of view. Of course, we can accommodate livestock in five-star hotels and provide them with maids and concierges - but consumers will have to pay for it. "

Yushin called the statement that the animals are being "pumped" with antibiotics "a mantra that has set the teeth on edge." "The use of veterinary drugs is strictly regulated by their manufacturers and is under the closest control of state bodies, including foreign countries importing livestock products," said the head of the IA. "The fact that the Russian Federation supplies meat to 65 countries of the world for more than $ 1 billion a year is the best evidence of the safety and demand for Russian meat and another clumsy attempt to denigrate the entire industry, "he stressed.

At the same time, Yushin noted that pesticides and agrochemicals are used in the cultivation of crop products - and representatives of the animal world, for example, bees, have repeatedly become victims of these necessary agricultural technologies under certain conditions.

Yushin recalled that with the recommended intake of meat and meat products at about 75 kg per person per year, the average consumption of this important animal protein in the world is only 43 kg per person per year, and in poor countries - less than 25 kg. Therefore, any attempts to "impose tribute on livestock production" will lead not only to the most negative socio-economic consequences in dozens of countries, to social tension and an increase in poverty, but also to increasing segregation of people - when only the rich will be provided with all the necessary set of nutrients contained in livestock products.

The National Meat Association brings together suppliers and producers of meat from different regions of the Russian Federation.