NFU Scotland Chief Executive James Withers said that some of the NFUS members who made use of the recent opportunities to hear about QMS's future plans left those meetings with a fuller appreciation of the work done to promote Scotland's red meat sector and were broadly supportive of a levy increase to continue that effort.

"Those we have spoken to outside those meetings by and large share the same sentiment," Mr Withers said.

Mr Withers said that QMS has to be in a position to deliver a wide range of services - promotion, research and development, market information - as well as being well placed to counter the growing volume of negative publicity affecting the production and consumption of red meat.

He said margins in the livestock sector continue to be challenging. However no industry moves forward without investing in its future, he said.

"Indeed, at a time of both challenge and opportunity for Scotland’s red meat sector, it would have been counter-productive to preside over a downsizing of this area of work," Mr Withers said.

“This levy increase will give QMS a collective strength on developing and marketing Scotland's meat industry that 14,000 individual businesses can't possibly achieve on their own," Mr Withers concluded.

Further Reading

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