PULLED PORK
THREAT TO BACON SUPPLIES AS SOLE PIG ABATTOIR CLOSES
BRINGING home the bacon is set to get a lot tougher across Tasmania, with the state’s pig producers worried about the impact of the threatened closure of the Devonport abattoir next month.
The abattoir’s owners, Brazilian meat giant JBS, announced this week it planned to close the doors of its Quoiba plant on November 15.
The Government will start a series of roundtable meetings today to try to keep Tasmania’s only major pig slaughterhouse open.
Sandy Bay butcher Marcus Vermey said he sourced pork from several suppliers iers but they all used the Devonport abattoir: “It will be a huge kick in the teeth which could see local supermarkets and butchers struggling to get local product.”
TASMANIANS will struggle to get their hands on local hams this Christmas, with the doors of the Devonport Abattoir set to close next month.
The state’s pig producers are worried about filling Christmas orders and retaining an on-island kill facility as the State Government works to find a new operator of the Quoiba facility.
Supermarkets and butchers are concerned the closure of the state’s only major pig kill facility would mean they were unable to source local meat.
Major supplier Scottsdale Pork sells pork products to more than 70 outlets across Tasmania including Hill St Grocer and IGA supermarkets.
Marcus Vermey, of Vermey’s Quality Meats in Sandy Bay, said his butchery sourced pork from several suppliers but they all used Devonport Abattoir.
“It will be a huge kick in the teeth, which could see local supermarkets and butchers struggling to get local product,” Mr Vermey said. “We get a couple of pigs a week from Scottsdale and the rest from smaller suppliers but they all use the Devonport facility.
“They can’t send their pigs to Longford because it is a Halal-accredited abattoir.”
Brazilian meat giant JBS, which also owns the Longford Abattoir, announced this week it would close the doors of its Quoiba plant on November 15.
More than 100 jobs hang in the balance.
The Government will start a series of meetings today to try to keep Tasmania’s only major pig slaughterhouse open. Lamb and beef producers and supplies will also be affected.
Exeter pig producer Alan Broomby, who will attend today’s Launceston meeting, said the abattoir took about 600 pigs every week from farmers across the state.
“They are the last major operator and we have been concerned for a number of years about what would happen if we were ever in this situation,” Mr Broomby said.
“It is coming up to Christmas and we have orders to fill already. Tasmania is in danger of losing its local pork brand.
“We certainly do not want to send our animals off the island. It would be unfeasible in terms of cost and there are animal welfare issues to consider.”
Braddon Labor MP Justine Keay has urged the state and federal governments to form a locally led taskforce, similar to after the closure of Caterpillar’s Burnie operations and Murray Goulburn’s Edith Creek facility.
Tasmanian Labor said Deputy Premier Jeremy Rockliff needed to explain to workers why the Government’s $800,000 grant to JBS failed to secure their jobs. Treasurer Peter Gutwein indicated yesterday that JBS had accessed half of the grant to upgrade its plant but the rest was unspent and would be pursued.