HP Hood LLC’s Post

The conventional meat industry should take seriously the implications to their business model of the shifting sentiments around meat, and act accordingly to diversify into alternative proteins. This won't be the last such commitment (I anticipate these will pick up substantially as broader consumer and government awareness increases around issues like climate and animal welfare), and this potentially has serious repercussions for sales.

Just as issues around supermarkets "price-gouging" claims and associated issues( eg Woolies Australia day merchandise deletion) starts to drift into the media background, todays SMH carries a story on Woolies buying canned fruit from overseas. This move leaves local growers in the Goulburn Valley district of Victoria more than disappointed. While there might be sound commercial reasons for such a move, I would have thought that the Woolworths leadership team may have seen "brand reputation" ( and the rebuilding of such) and primary producer relationships as more important vs the small profit margin gain of buying canned fruit overseas. (Especially as Coles is not doing same.) #Supermarkets #Woolworths #brandreputation #importvslocalsupply #producegrowerrelationships #courtingcontroversy

This is very frustrating. I'm not really opposed to anything discussed in this article or video, it's what's missing that is so glaring. First, no mention of meat quality. We got the product too lean and commodity pork no longer has any flavor. We went down the "Other White Meat" path and haven't been able to adjust since. "The Other White Meat" campaign might as well have been called "It's Like Chicken, but More Expensive." Clearly, the campaign wasn't effective at improving the health profile in the eyes of the consumer and we lost the flavor. If you look at the cuts that do the best, they're mostly fatter and more flavorful. It turns out, "It's like Beef, but Cheaper" might have been a better option. Instead, the incentive structures are still communicating to producers and allied industry that leaner is better. Second, no mention of the rapidly growing elderly population. I have no problem with us trying to better understand the millenials and gen Z, but we're almost completely ignoring the fastest growing demographic in the country...65+. I'd say we have a better chance of success getting a big group of boomers and gen X to keep eating pork as they age than we do of getting a smaller group of young people to start. The idea of young people being the holy grail of marketing is a relic of the past when populations were growing rapidly. Now that population growth is slowing, the population is aging and the generational wealth distribution is getting increasingly out of whack, we need to recognize that when it comes to today's young people, there of fewer of them than you think and they don't have any money. Lastly, no mention of the fact that our industry has a terrible track record of growing domestic demand. I understand this is not exactly a point that an organization tasked with promoting pork wants to emphasize, but as an industry, we have to come to terms with the reality that per capita pork consumption has been flat in this country for 50 years. When the mandatory pork checkoff was implemented in 1986, the US per capita pork consumption was 67.7 lbs. In 2023, it was 63.7 lbs. The highest year was 68.5 lbs and it hasn't been above 66 lbs in almost 20 years. The industry needs to do some real soul searching. We have major issues with demand for our product, the economic sustainability of the industry and our global competitiveness and we seem to have our heads stuck in the sand on several very important issues. I love this industry and I think it has almost unlimited potential. We have amazing people and a ton of fundamental advantages that make the US an almost ideal place to raise pigs. We need to wake up though and face reality. If we don't make big, fundamental changes in the next decade or so, we're going to be in big trouble. #pork #trade #demand

Hey Produce People!! Traveling through #huntingtonbeach we stopped at a Costco Wholesale! To be real Jihoon Kim and I need to pick up some things for the house and I couldn't resists. This Costco was slammed today as you can see! They couldn't stock the produce department fast enough. There were a lot of very large fruit and vegetables in here? You will see in the video from eggplant, onions, oranges and more... Large and in charge. Shout-out to my buddy John Pandol as they had a full pallet of Pandol Brothers Inc. green grapes in the cooler... and yes we picked some up of course!!! There were some brands I've never seen before, by living in Florida we have different suppliers which I mention. #innovation #freshproduce #freshfood #fruit #freshfruit #freshvegetables #freshfruits #produceindustry #fruitsandveggies #foodsafety #producelife #farming #farmlife #veggies #marketing #consumer #onions #waterforall #people #leaders #video #creative #sustainableagriculture #sustainability #packagingsolutions #packagingindustry #packaging #agriculture 

Are you aware of your carbon footprint across scope 1, 2, and 3? Measurement and understanding are the key first steps in creating your improvement plan.

An important document by AgriFutures Australia and Australian Chicken Meat Federation (ACMF) points out the strategic direction of #chickenmeat #workforce in Australia. It also gives insights into how to train and foster #nextgeneration of #poultry experts to support the industry. With a large cohort of 14 PhD students in our Consortium, one of the essential elements is our commitment to train and support growth of future poultry experts through our six research programs and offer a great platform of looking at the chicken meat research and industry development from a holistic view via #nutrition, #guthealth, #environment, and #societal footprint. We also offer industry #placements to our students by working with our industry partners and levy payers. Students will have a chance to experience #commercial operation of chicken meat production and see the impact of their research in real world scenarios. Our team is committed to support and improve chicken meat industry for a more #sustainable future to feed the #growingpopulation.

Enhancing Cleanliness Standards for Our Clients! We recently had the privilege of hosting a comprehensive facility cleaning session for Skaaf Foods (Pvt.) Ltd. to discuss and refine their cleaning protocols. As we all know, a clean environment is essential for the health and productivity of any workplace. Key Highlights from the Session: Tailored Cleaning Strategies: We worked closely with Skaaf Foods (Pvt.) Ltd. to develop customized cleaning solutions that address their unique needs and challenges. Training & Best Practices: Our team shared industry best practices and provided hands-on training to ensure their staff is equipped with the latest cleaning techniques. Innovative Solutions: We introduced cutting-edge technologies, that enhance effectiveness and efficiency in their cleaning processes. Sustainability Focus: We emphasized the importance of eco-friendly cleaning products, aligning with Skaaf Foods (Pvt.) Ltd. 's commitment to sustainability. Ongoing Support: We established a feedback loop to ensure continuous improvement and responsiveness to their evolving needs. Thank you, Skaaf Foods (Pvt.) Ltd., for trusting us to support your facility cleaning efforts! Together, we are committed to creating a healthier, cleaner environment for everyone. #FacilityCleaning #ClientPartnership #HealthAndSafety #Sustainability #Innovation

Progress on Better Chicken Commitment ‘falling behind’, warns Compassion in World Farming More UK supermarkets will need to sign up to the #BetterChickenCommitment if the British poultry sector is to “raise the baseline standard of chicken”, Compassion in World Farming has urged. While the UK, with 18 companies, was second only to France in Europe in terms of total sign-ups to the BCC, the fact only two of the businesses were supermarkets (M&S and Waitrose) was holding back the rollout of the scheme, warned Compassion’s second annual Chicken Track report, published today. By comparison, all of France’s major retailers had signed up to the scheme, CIWF said. To comply with the BCC, businesses need to adhere to a suite of welfare commitments, ranging from the implementation of a maximum chicken stocking density of 30kg/m² or less, and the adoption of slower growing breeds such as the Hubbard and improvements around light. Air quality improvements and more humane slaughtering techniques – such as controlled atmospheric stunning using inert gas are also mandated. Many UK retailers, such as Sainsbury’s, Co-op and Morrisons had made recent commitments to reduce the stocking density of their chicken to 30kg/m², CIWF noted, while some were offering a ‘tier’ of BCC-compliant chicken – such as Tesco’s ‘Room to Roam’ or Morrisons’ ‘Space to Roam’. https://lnkd.in/dcKETwNQ #poultry #poultryindustry

The Coalition of Immokalee Workers, Immokalee, FL.: Workers fighting modern slavery from Florida's tomato fields since 1995. I won't retell the shocking story of tomato slaves in Florida because over the years this coalition of agricultural workers has made themselves heard, freed others, and have made public Kroger's link to a blueberry farmer and a large human trafficking ring. If you have ever tried to eat a Florida tomato, you will understand why Florida marl is wholly unsuited for tomato cultivation. Even the very expensive "vine ripe hydroponic" deep red tomatoes in Florida supermarkets taste like a watery melon type fruit. Therefore, the largest buyers of Florida tomatoes are Fast Food. The CIW clearly lays out the reality of how Fast Food caused labor wages to be "fixed," not changing from 1978 until sometime after the first successful lawsuit in the late 1990's. Read about these courageous people and how after lifting themselves up a small notch went on to get to the deepest depths of modern slavery in the USA, revealing unexpected corporation food providers as sellers of human flesh. #modernslavery #agriculturalslavery #humantrafficking #fastfood #Florida #evergladesagriculture #humanrights #fairfoodprogram #boycott