Farm-Scape is sponsored by Manitoba Pork Council and Sask Pork Play Audio Farm-Scape is a Wonderworks Canada production and is distributed courtesy of Manitoba Pork Council and Sask Pork.

Farm-Scape, Episode 1474

The Canadian Pork Council says the introduction of Country of Origin Labelling in Japan is making effective product promotion more important than ever.

Canada's Pork Industry has kicked off a major promotional campaign in newspapers and in the mass transportation system in Japan to make Japanese consumers more aware of Canadian product.

Earlier this month a delegation made up of pork producers and provincial pork organization representatives traveled to Japan to take part in a fact finding and trade mission.

Delegation head Claire Schlegel says Canadian pork has traditionally been marketed on a company by company basis but new Japanese country of origin labelling requirements make initiatives like the 'Brand Canada' promotion even more valuable.

"Japan imports about 45 percent of the pork it eats. Japan is an industrialized relatively wealthy nation so it's seen as the best market in the world.

The competition is extremely fierce so it's important that Canada has a presence there and that the whole branding Canada promotion positioning continue.

Our main competition is from Denmark. They're present there, Danish pork is well known. From the United States, individual production systems such as Smithfield and Premium Standard Farms are very well known.

We saw competition beginning to come from the Australians and they had a delegation there positioning Australia as a favorable place to buy pork from.

Canada traditionally has not been seen as a large pork producing country, a country from which Japanese buyers would purchase pork from".

Schlegel says the response among Japanese buyers to the pilot promotional project has been highly favorable. He says the indication is that they would like to see more of that type of promotion happening.

For Farmscape.Ca, I'm Bruce Cochrane.