Ensuring quality

Scotch meat assurance standards – confidence for you and your customers

Quality Meat Scotland is committed to providing Assurance throughout the supply chain and embraces quality, safety, traditional husbandry and wholesomeness. Quality Meat Scotland research identified the following concerns that strongly influence consumer choice:

• “we are what we eat”
• “we need assurance that what we are feeding our animals will not harm us”
• “we want a transparent, clear system of assured quality we can trust”
• “we want standards policed in a way we can have confidence in”

Effective Assurance is a longstanding, integral part of the Scotch meat and livestock sector and Scotland was one of the first to recognise the market opportunity of offering assured products.

The Quality Meat Scotland Assurance Schemes mean that only animals from farms that can meet the assurance standards are eligible to be classed and called Scotch Beef or Scotch Lamb, and these farms are independently inspected annually.

The classifications ‘Scotch Beef’ and ‘Scotch Lamb’ are given only to cattle or sheep that have been born and raised on assured Scottish farms and then slaughtered at approved slaughterhouses in Scotland.

PGI and PDO status

The European Commission has developed the PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) and PDO (Protected Designation of Origin) systems. These qualifications protect foodstuffs across Europe and help consumers by giving them information about the specific character of products and a regional identity. Partly as a result of Scotland’s excellent Assurance Schemes, but also due to satisfying the strict guidelines laid down, both Scotch Beef and Scotch Lamb have attained the important Protected Geographical Indication status from the European Union.

PDO takes this one step further and protects products that bear qualities and characteristics essentially due to a specific area, e.g. Orkney instead of Scotland.

So why are the PGI and PDO so important? Here are some key reasons:

• The PGI definition matches consumer expectations and so protects our industry from consumer misconceptions and misleading product claims
• Scotch Beef and Scotch Lamb generally carries a premium price in butchers, retailers and restaurants which leaves it open for abuse to call meat and dishes ‘Scotch’ when they are not. PGI status makes this practice illegal
• PGI and PDO have common status in Europe – e.g. Parma ham, feta cheese and Parmigiano Reggiano cheese – and so this qualification for our Beef and Lamb enhances the profile of our industry in other markets as a quality product

The Protected Geographical Indications (PGI) for Scotch Beef and Scotch Lamb have been in force since 21st June 1996 but the definition of Scotch Beef has been subsequently tightened on 21st July 2004 and the definition of Scotch Lamb on 11th August 2004. Ever since, any time the terms Scotch Beef or Scotch Lamb are used, it means that the meat has met the PGI specifications. It is a legal requirement that the consumer is not misled in the event that Scotch and non-Scotch product are being sold in the same premises.

In contracts you may consider using the following wording in any communication to your supplier: “The beef and lamb you supply to my business must meet the definition of Scotch as defined under the EU PGI legislation.”

Source: DEFRA

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