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QS – Report on 2011 Outlook for 2012
QS beef - in demand
Beef bearing the QS certification mark is not only
increasingly popular with the food retail sector;
McDonald‘s also trusts in the QS scheme. The
company‘s new quality campaign emphasises
the cooperation with QS scheme participants,
and McDonald‘s had a joint stand with QS in the
„FarmExperience“ section of the International Green
Week 2012 in Berlin. QS is stepping up cooperation
with QM milk in order to
increase the availability of
QS-certified beef. Last year
alone, this resulted in the
addition of 671 dairy farms
who deliver slaughter cows
to the QS scheme based on
recognition of their QM milk
audit.
Poultry production – greater
transparency thanks to spot audits
The participants in the QS scheme were quick to
react to critical reports in the media on conditions
in which livestock was kept in the poultry sector,
and poultry producers have been inspected with
greater frequency since the beginning of 2012. The
validity of certification has been reduced from three
to two years, and unannounced inspections are
now being performed in the production companies.
These spot audits attach particular importance to
animal welfare, animal health and hygiene. Moreover,
a monitoring programme has been introduced to
optimise the prescription of antibiotics. As of April
2012, all dispensations of antibiotics in the poultry
production segment are recorded in a database.
Pig farming - animal welfare takes
priority
QS actively supports its scheme participants –
by implementing animal welfare regulations, for
example. The current Guideline Pig Farming provides
useful tips on statutory changeover periods ending
in 2013 and on the new requirements for livestock
management, shed flooring, shed climate and
livestock density.
Progress was made on the piglet castration front in
2011. In July, Göttingen University published a QS-
commissioned study on sensory research in entire
males. The findings provide those involved in the
industry with valuable insights into the assessment
of meat from entire males. In cooperation with
scientists and industry representatives from the
Netherlands, QS is determining how employees on
the abattoir slaughter line can reliably detect boar
odour.
Agriculture
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January 2007: German handball team world champions with QS
The public profile of the QS scheme for food is given a major boost when the German
handball team become world champions in January 2007 wearing tops showing the QS
certification mark. Thanks to an EU-funded information campaign, the CMA has the
necessary funds at its disposal to finance sponsoring of the team strip as well as a TV
advertising campaign: the QS certification mark is on television – together with the
Handball World Champions.
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March 2007: animal welfare
An animal protection organisation levels
accusations against a QS-approved piglet
farm. The problem concerns the rare
Glässers disease, which was not medically
treated in a systematic fashion.