BC Meats Quality Information System Now Expanded Our

BC Meats Quality Information System Now Expanded

Our Vision • To create a brand that is quickly recognized, throughout all of BC as a sign of local quality. • To build a consumer relationship based on integrity, quality assurance and traceability to BC farm families. • To increase access to and sales of premium BC lamb to BC families.

Branding of BC Meats • BC Meats Quality Information System (BCMQIS) allows our abattoirs and producer associations to create brands that are easily recognized. • Production Standards and Roles & Responsibilities, together with BCMQIS will form the foundation of the Traceability and Quality Assurance program for each of the brands. • These production standards are set out by the PBCL Industry Advisory Board.

• Chefs, restaurants, stores, and consumers will recognize this brand as local, quality BC lamb. • Consumers need to know that each carcass has been evaluated to meet the quality standard in order to display this brand is fully traceable, from farm to table.

Goals of BCMQIS • To provide information to producers so that they are able to compare production attributes to carcass quality and thereby improve their carcass quality over time. • To continue building retail, chef and consumer relationships based on integrity, quality assurance and traceability to BC farm families • Used along side your farm brand as a stamp of quality & traceability

Participating Abattoirs 1. Lawrence Meats – Dawson 8. Creek 2. Bulkley Valley CS – Smithers 3. 4. Kawano Farms – Prince George Rainer C. Cutting – Darfield 9. Gunter Brothers – Courtenay Plecas Meats - Nanaimo 10. Campbell Farms – Saturna Island 11. Salt Spring Abattoir Society 5. 12. Parry Bay Sheep Farm – Kam Lake View – Kamloops Metchosin 6. Magnum Meats – Rock Cr. 13. Valley wide Meats - Enderby 7. Johnston Meats – Chilliwack

Carcass Scoring Criteria • Carcasses are evaluated based on muscling and fat cover • BCMQIS Lamb Carcass Scoring Criteria Sheet

Carcass Scoring Criteria BCMQIS gives the abattoir the ability to evaluate lamb carcasses very quickly, based on degrees of muscling and fat. You can clearly see the differences in muscling and fat cover in the neck, shoulders, loins and hips. The carcass evaluator compares the carcass to the standard photos on his evaluation screen. When he has determined the appropriate match, he clicks on the photo and the carcass score is automatically produced. To qualify for sale under the Premium BC Lamb Program, lambs must score: Premium BC Lamb – Grain Fed – Minimum **** Grade (score of 6) Premium BC-Lamb – Grass Fed – Minimum *** Grade (score of 4 -5)

BCMQIS Process • Producer can log onto the system when shipping lambs, record tag #s and cutting instructions for each lamb or group of lambs. • Abattoir scores the carcass under our BC Lamb Evaluation system and takes a photo of each carcass. • Producer can then view these photos, the carcass scores and the carcass weights by tag # in real time, once the abattoir has scored them. If he doesn’t need the grading info – the abattoir will not grade the carcass but the rest of the information and the destination is entered to ensure traceability information is quickly and easily accessible • Abattoir will record the destination of each lamb or groups of lambs before they leave the plant and the system will automatically retire the tag #s. • The destination – store or restaurant can log in to view their order, date of processing, carcass photo, lot # and can print stickers for meat packing which include the Premium BC Lamb logo.

Funding Support This seminar is supported by Growing Forward 2, a federalprovincial-territorial initiative

We invite you to become licensed today, by visiting www. bcabattoirs. org/membership Make sure Nancy has your email address so you can be sent a copy of the BCMQIS Lamb Scoring Criteria as well as the Production Standards and Roles & Responsibilities. THANK YOU! Now Expanded