Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) attended the Global RoundTable for Sustainable Beef (GRSB) Conference held in Denvor, Colorado between 7–10 November.
Representing New Zealand beef producers’ interests was B+LNZ’s Farmer Director George Tatham, North America Trade and Relationship Manager Jason Frost and Senior Trade Policy Advisor Nicholas Jolly.
Within the GRSB, there are 12 countries represented as regional roundtables, including the New Zealand Roundtable for Sustainable Beef, of which B+LNZ is a founding member.
At the conference, B+LNZ heard from other roundtables about the work they are doing in their countries and regions to improve beef sustainability across the three GRSB goals of climate, nature positive production, and animal health and welfare.
B+LNZ’s Eastern North Island Farmer Director George Tatham says the GRSB’s global reach and whole of supply chain coverage provides it with a strong voice to advocate on areas of interest to all beef producers, such as greenhouse gas metrics, the importance of beef in nutritious diets, and the ongoing efforts to improve environmental impacts and animal welfare.
“Hearing from producers around the world, I am proud of the work that New Zealand farmers are already doing in these areas and the contribution B+LNZ is making within the GRSB. We are seen as world leading by our colleagues in North and South America, Africa, Europe, and Australia and they are highly interested to hear about the actions our farmers are taking on the ground.
“It has also been extremely useful to hear from our beef global producing colleagues about how they are approaching these challenges and opportunities, particularly regarding how they work with their governments, NGOs, and processors to communicate their message about sustainable beef production. The huge variety of beef production systems around the world means that everyone is taking different approaches and we can learn from each other.”
“I am also confident that the GRSB has provided a robust and positive voice for global beef producers who attended COP27 negotiations in Egypt. Their goal was to demonstrate the importance of sustainable beef production for global nutrition and advocating for the recognition of metrics that recognise the short-lived warming effect of methane emissions such as GWP*.”
ENDS
Notes to editors:
- For more information about GRSB, visit the official website.
- For more information about the GRSB 2022 Conference, visit this webpage.
For more information, please email media@beeflambnz.com or call B+LNZ’s Communications Advisor Abigail Delaney at 027 209 9891.