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EDEKA Südwest and PIC Deutschland Sign Technology Contract for Meat Quality
GERMANY - PIC's German subsidiary, PIC Deutschland GmbH, has signed a contract with EDEKA Südwest Fleisch GmbH for collaboration on quality control for the EDEKA "Gutfleisch-Programm", a Premium Meat Programme. A pool of EDEKA Meat Quality boars is to be set up with the help of genetic markers from the PICmarq® programme and PIC expertise.
In this way, PIC is able to underpin its pioneering role in the use of modern biotechnology while at the same time confirming its technological leadership.
In April, the EDEKA Group joined with ITM Entreprises S.A., Paris, and the Spanish Eroski Group to form the largest food marketing association in Europe. PIC and EDEKA Südwest have been working closely together since May 2003. National and international PIC meat quality experts carried out extensive system reviews of the "Gutfleisch" Programme. The main focus was on abattoirs so that, alongside the genetics, lasting improvements in the "Gutfleisch" Programme could be made through the optimisation of slaughtering and processing.
Genetic markers provide an efficient opportunity to make significant improvements in meat quality through breeding. By using these markers from the PICmarq® programme, which have already been successfully trialed in other programmes, breeding stock can be selected on the basis of DNA tests to ascertain their suitability for inclusion in the "Gutfleisch" programme. PIC now has at its disposal a significant package of genetic markers with positive effects in areas such as drip loss. Using these markers EDEKA boars suitable for the "Gutfleisch" Programme will be chosen from the AI station and at the boar multiplier. The selected boars will pass these positive qualities to their offspring. These markers can also be used for traceability, a quality criterion that is important to EDEKA. This means, for example, that they will be able to identify the parents of individual cuts of "Gutfleisch" meat at the butchers.
"Today is an historic day", declared the managing director of EDEKA Südwest Fleisch GmbH, Jürgen Sinn. "The most important prerequisite for a lasting success in the Premium segment of meat marketing is the ´end of mediocrity´. Only well-run butchers, providing significantly better quality, will persuade consumers to move away from price-dominated discount goods towards a quality programme. EDEKA will benefit from this alliance in the market. We expect to see a strengthening of the "Gutfleisch" Programme as a result of our collaboration."
The EDEKA boar pool will be established in AI stations in Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria. The EDEKA boars selected by PIC will only be made available to the "Gutfleisch" concerns of the production association "Gutschwein w. V.", based in Reutlingen and the "Qualitätsschwein Süd GmbH" in Niederstetten. During the year ahead both producer groups will supply around 260,000 "Gutfleisch" offspring from EDEKA boars to EDEKA Südwest.
Source: PIC Germany - 27th June 2005
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