4 The editorial
Meat is worth its price. Gallups yearly inquiry about meat consumption shows that 95 % of the consumers eat meat. In spite of several food scandals the consumption has been the same thorough several years. Today the producers must solve environmental problems; they care more about the welfare of their animals and try to further improve the quality of beef.
- Luckily the consumers always have trusted us and also in the future we must live up to their confidence. What else can we do but our very best, asks chief editor Veli Saarenheimo.
- The Finnish Food and Drink Industries Federation draws at the moment up an instruction book “Good Manufacturing Practice”, a manual about the Finnish meat production. How are our cattle breaded, how fed and how is the medication? The questions must get answers, stresses chief editor Veli Saarenheimo and wishes everybody welcome to the Summer Meeting on the 22 of August.

5 The Summer Meeting of the Finnish Meat Trade Association
The meeting is held on 21-23 of August 2009 in Vanajanlinna. The programme includes several items; information and convivial gatherings; meetings, seminars, lunches, golf matches and skittle playing. Enrolments by 1.8. 2009.

6 HK Ruokatalos Md Jari Leija: The whole branch must cooperate
HK Ruokatalo continues to improve their profitability. One possibility is subcontracts. The collaborators are offered common development work that demands long-term contracts. The structural transformation that HK Ruokatalo started in the year 2006 is now finished. The manufacturing plants in Turku and Tampere have been closed and the production has been transferred to the manufacturing plant for processed meat and convenience food in Vanda and in connection with slaughter activities in Forssa. All logistic operations of HK Ruokatalo is now concentrated to Vanda.
- The capital region is the centre of logistics. Furthermore two thirds of our home production is produced in Vanda, explains Jari Leija.
One problem is how Finland in the future can be self-sufficient concerning beef.
- The problem concerns the branch as a whole. The production of beef is all the time declining ant this trend must be broken, stresses Jari Leija.
He is also of the opinion that the activities of the meat branch are decentralized and he wants a centralization of the business operations.

10 Healthy animals produce better
Healthy and well-kept animals benefit the whole meat branch. We know that the condition of animals before slaughter affects the quality of beef. The aim of the legislation concerning prevention of cruelty to animals is to protect animals from undue suffering, pain and distress, to promote the welfare and good treatment of animals. M.Pol.SWC, Doctoral Candidate at Åbo Akademi University Birgitta Wahlberg writes her thesis about “Farm and Slaughter Animals Welfare – the Regulation and Supervision”.
- From a legal point of view the animals are objects for certain protection specified and legislated by law. They have neither rights nor obligations but their owners have, points Wahlberg out.
In 1979 in England a consultative organizations was founded “The Farm Animal Welfare Council” (FAWC) with the mission to control the well being of farm and slaughter animals.
The organization has drawn up a list of 5 freedoms of the animals. Freedom from hunger and thirst, freedom from discomfort, freedom from pain, injury or disease, freedom to express normal behavior and freedom from fear and distress, stresses Birgitta Wahlberg.

14 Summer greetings

18 The meat grinder. Appointments
Tero Kallio has per 20.7. 2009 been appointed Secretary General of Chocolate, Sugar Confectionery and Biscuit Industries´ Association and managing director of the Finnish Federation of the Brewing and Soft Drinks Industry. Tommi Ranki has per 28.4. 2009 been appointed Purchasing Manager at the Bakery Industry. The watchful stimulate the production of ecological products. Households that actively buy ecological products have increased their purchases by 60% in comparison with the year 2006. To day there are in Finland about 124 000 households that actively buy ecological products. The customers are young persons, singles and parents of small children. Only every third household never buys ecological products. The tables of the month. The production of meat and poultry January-April. A speedy food control. Virve Hagren has in her thesis developed fast and easy methods to discover additives and to watch over salmonella in food. Finland’s best summer sausages. In the sausage competition that takes part on 13 June are two series, special sausages and barbecue sausages. About 30 sausages take part in the contest. HoReCa- news in spring 2009. Saarioinen is the leading supplier within the HoReCa branch. The products of Saarioinen are all the time developed. New products this spring are tender and juicy baked filets of broiler, rapidly grilled filet-skewers and tiny, juicy cubes of broiler that easily can be used in several dishes. The HoReCa products represent about 30 per cent of the turnover of Saarioinen. The Finnish food branch invests in R&D. Last year the Finnish food industry spent 62,7 million euros on research and product development. Thanks to this development about thousand new products are yearly put on the markets. 48 products took part in the completion “The Star Product of the Year” that is arranged by the Finnish Food and Drink Industries Federation. The winners were announced during the greatest training occasion of the year ”The Food Day 5.5. 2009” and were Bioferms Yosa-smoothies and Kasvis Gallerias Beetroot lasagne. Liha-Saarioinens pork-tenderloin got a honourable mention. The product is a gourmet product; tender, tasty and beautiful, a real success. Varho-Lankinen got a feather in the hat. Tiina Varho-Lankinen, chairwoman of the Finnish Broiler Association and a broiler producer, got the distinction “A feather in the hat”. She has actively taken part in the development of the national quality program for poultry. Snellman was awarded for work safety. After a following-up round Snellman was awarded as the best work safety entrepreneur in the meat branch. The diploma was given during the seminar “Safety, well-being, and productivity”. Snellman works hard to minimize the accidents at work and aim to reduce them to 50/year. Reindeer meat from Lapland has got a protection of name. Reindeer Meat is now acknowledged as a high quality and traditional food product in EU. (PDO) The recipe of the month: Orange broiler.

22 Perfect qualities
Within the food industry there is a growing demand on X-ray equipment in the production control. Especially the food branch is changing to X-ray equipment in order to detect strange particles on the production lines. According to product chief Juhani Tuomainen at Suomen HPK, the firm that imports the equipment, about ten outfits are sold yearly for about 35 000 euro each. Snellman and HK Ruokatalo have used X-ray equipment already for a long time.
- The equipment discovers a bone ship of 0,3 mm that has got into a hamburger, explains Lasse Merilä project chief at HK Ruokatalo.
Persons who use the equipment or serve it must pass a radiation and protection training organized by the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority. The authority also controls the equipment before it is taken into use and with five years intervals.

25 Meat processing engineers from Seinäjoki
In autumn begins the engineer training concerning meat and convenience food. The regions East Bothnia and Seinäjoki are specialized in food production. Jarmo Alarinta, Head of the degree programme in food processing at Seinäjoki University of Applied Sciences, is of the opinion that the location is very successful.
- Atrias establishments in Nurmo are in within a stone throw of the university and in East Bothnia work several big entrepreneurs within the branch, for instance Snellman and Pouttu, explains Alarinta.
About fifty persons applied for the training. The studies consist of several periods of practice and benefits thus the entrepreneurs in the region. Director Merja Leino at Atria Suomi is of the opinion that the training is a step in the right direction.
- The young come to us as summer workers, they get interested in the branch and want to specialize. Of course we encourage them. The food industry is a modern industry that works with processes and matrixes. The tasks are challenging and comprise several sectors. According to the statistics 85 per sent of the engineers work as experts in leading positions as planners and product developers, tells Leino.

28 Snellman´s new Salamihouse
The new salami factory of Snellman was inaugurated in May. The capacity of the establishment is 1,5 million kg/year, the investment was 7 million euro. Emeritus professor of meat technology Fritz P. Niinivaaras video address of welcome was the climax of the inauguration. Niinivaara has also given the factory its name. Professor Niinivaara, born in 1919, has started the Finnish meat research, education and training. Thanks to Fritz “Piki” Niinivaaras work a professorship, a chair of meat technology, was founded at the University of Helsinki. Niinivara was the first to hold the professorship and today several of his pupils are leaders within the meat branch.
The brothers Per, Karl, Henry, Kurt and Lars founded Snellman Ltd 1951. Today the enterprise is the third greatest meat processing plant in Finland, famous for its cold cuts, liver products, fresh prepacked meat products and convenience food. Snellman has slaughter activities and slaughters this year 28,5 million kg pigs and beef. The activities are based on their skilful and loyal employees, their well-known brands and good contacts with their collaborators. The new investment improves the efficiency and intensifies the processes.

30 Finnish steaks
A new association the Beef Cattle Association has been founded. It wants to bring out into the market and popularise the Finnish beef and to create a brand.
- Beef cattle – Charolais, Angus, Hereford, Limousin and Simmental - produce the best beef and they represent 14,5 % of our cattle population. We want to improve the whole chain, find new sales territories and we look for small producers who can process the whole carcass, tells Md Juha Alatalo.
Ethics and ecological breeding are characteristics for the Finnish meat production, and are good corner stones for a brand.

34 The meat industry technologists met in Tampere
The meat industry technician’s annual general meeting and training day was held in May. Jyri Prusila was elected chairman of the society. During the training day Senior Inspector Sari Salminen from Evira told about the new regulations concerning transports of animals. Secretary for Livestock production Jukka Rantala from the Central Union of Agricultural Producers and Forest Owners told about the changes in the meat branch. Mika Ala-Fossi from Atria gave a talk about the Finnish broilerchain, and Lihalehtis managing editor Mari Hannuksela told about the double role of the magazine as an informant and a lobbyist. Martti Pauniranta, secretary of the meat industry technologists talked about the labour market.

36 Björkö Wärdshus (Björkö Inn) offers delicacies from Kvarken straits
Björkö Wärldshus is a picturesque enterprise in the travel industry and offers tasty meals and accommodations of high quality. Björköby is situated 37 km from Vasa in the archipelago of Kvarken straits that has been approved on the World Heritage List of Unesco. Pia Lönnbäck and Göran Antila have kept the inn since 1999 as a family business and the inn is open thorough the year. The operations are based on advanced orders; weddings, birthday parties, meetings and group feeding and Pia and Göran also organize programs and excursions.
- We can provide meals for 60 persons and 25 persons can stay overnight, tells Pia Lönnbäck.
Only local, ecological raw materials are used in the kitchen; vegetables, root vegetables, berries and mushrooms, absolutely fresh fish and locally produced meat of lamb and beef of Highland cattle.

39 EU:s agricultural policy does not promote the production of meat
Increasing expenses force European meat producers to shut down. Last year the prices on necessities and feedstuff rose and therefore the price on beef in EU is today sky-high. The production of meat in EU is unconcentrated and scattered and is often a by-product to the milk production. 8,5 million tons beef is consumed within EU, that is 14 per cent of the world’s consumption. EU is thus the second biggest meat consumer after USA. Big consumers are England, Italy and France where they prefer beef of high quality. Due to the recession the consumption of poultry, pork and sausages is rising in EU and also the new member states consume more pork and poultry.

42 Put the aces on the table
Viikki Food Centre (VFC) offers technical services and advice to the food industry. The business development services offered by VFC cover the entire food sector from product development to obtaining and analysing market information.
- When the branch changes and enterprises expand one must develop new competitive concepts and innovations to promote the productivity and profitability. One must create networks and find financial assistance and suitable, partners from universities, research institutes and the industry, explains Program Director Johanna Jaskari-Halonen.
Viikki Food Centre offers consulting, support and training projects tailored to meet individual needs and has extensive experience in project planning, management and coordination. Finnish enterprises often concentrate on product development and forget to find out how to launch the product on the market.
- The suppliers in the meat branch could for instance ponder how they can develop their services so that they can differ from their competitors, explains Jaskari-Halonen.
In China the interest for safe and secure food is growing like wildfire. Last April a Chinese delegation led by FDA (Food and Drug Administration) visited Finland. The delegates expressed the wish that Finland during the Shanghai- world exhibition EXPO 2010 should present their program concerning security and safety from stable to table. They were of the opinion that the programme in Finland had been excellently realised. The Chinese also wanted Finnish pork to be exhibited and served at the exhibition. Now the branch tries to find out how to present also other foodstuffs at the exhibition. The publicity will be enormous. About 75-100 million visitors are expected to the Shanghai exhibition EXPO 2010.

44 Index of services

54 The column
Columnist Sakari Nupponen, editor at the evening paper Ilta-Sanomat, writes this time about the abundance of cookery-books.
- Several TV-programs have made coking a very popular hobby, but today a lot of people look for new recipes on the net.
Earlier writers were inspired by years of famine, war and times of crisis but beginning from the year 1974, during the worst oil crisis, began a new hedonistic era, when the inspiration no longer was poverty and scantiness but pure pleasure. We had in Finland a similar trend several decades earlier when Konni Zilliacus wrote “Uncle Konnis Cookery-book” (1926) and Ville Vallgrens “Food and Beverages and Funny Old Men” (1917) and “Old Villes Food Kathechism” (1921).
Sakari Nupponens own cookery-book library is several meters long.
- Most of the books are just joyful reading but some books I use again and again. When preparing a special sauce, a Christmas-, fish or a game recipe that needs extra precision, stresses Sakari Nupponen.

55 Facts on meat
Markus Yli-Hemminki from the Finnish Meat Research Institute informs about poultry. Broiler and turkey are the most important poultry in Finland even if geese, duck, guinea fowls and pheasant are bread. Poultry became poplar in Finland in the 90-ties, and is today the third most popular meat in Finland. 2007 the Finns consumed 15 kg broiler/person and 2 kg turkey/person. The most famous breed is Nicolas. If the turkeys are well kept they are healthy and do not need neither medication nor vaccination. A turkey cock gives 7-10 kg meat and a hen 5-7 kg. The production of broiler is concentrated to the vicinity of slaughterhouses. Broiler grows rapidly and has a light frame. The fat is mostly under the skin, the drumstick is more fatty than the breast and the meat is extremely tender.

Translation: Nina Hackman.