Mainland chefs and meat retailers on a Meat and Livestock Australia sponsored tour of Tasmania have been highly impressed with Greenham’s branded beef.
Bateman’s Bay butcher, Jason Funnell, said it was great to have a better understanding of where the product came from and be in a position to pass this on to customers.
“We visited one of their accredited farms. What they promote is exactly what you see. Their promotional efforts have really made a big difference to our sales. Eighty percent of what we sell now comes from Greenham and I’m trying to push that to 100%.
The big difference is the work they do to differentiate their product. It’s one thing to have a good article but customers have to know the story,” Mr Funnell said.
Led by MLA’s Gerard Doherty, the group included representatives from most mainland states. The itinerary included visits to leading restaurants and retail outlets, and was designed to take delegates behind the scenes.
He said it was the first time MLA had conducted a tour with both butchers and chefs. “It’s worked very well – they’ve loved it. We’ve really tried to give them a good understanding of Tasmania’s genuinely clean, green environment.”
The tour put Tasmania on the map for chef Chris Urquhart from Perth’s Old Brewery restaurant. “I haven’t had a chance to try Tasmanian beef until now. It’s beautiful – very nice and tender – and at least comparable with the best product from Margaret River. I’m looking forward to a supplier setting up in WA.”
Jason Funnell described Tasmanian beef as “sensational” and said it had really taken off in his shop. “It cuts well, provides a good yield and has good colour, and of course being MSA graded we know it meets all specifications. I just can’t fault it.
“Customers are really recognizing it as a Tasmanian product and asking for it. If we forget to put the branding tickets in the meat trays, they’ll ask ‘have you got that Tassie meat’?
Greenham Tasmanian managing director, Peter Greenham, who accompanied the group, said it was great to get such positive feedback.
“We’ve always known Tasmanian grass fed beef had great potential. The product has done very well in our international markets and it’s very reassuring to see our domestic promotions starting to pay off.”
By Meat Livestock Australia
