By Aimee Mahony, chief poultry advisor, NFU
I think we can all agree that this year has been a whirlwind and in light of the latest government restrictions and as we head in to the winter months, it looks like we have a fairly different Christmas season ahead of us.
We all know that Christmas in the poultry industry means turkeys and we have kicked off the season this year with our virtual turkey marketing meeting which took place a few weeks ago now. It was great to see such a great turnout and some really interesting discussion taking place amongst producers. I think we all recognise that this year will be unique for turkey producers, whether it is changing customer demand or how marketing has to adapt to consumer needs.
One thing that does remain constant though is the NFU’s successful social media day using #BuyMyTurkey. We’ll be sharing more details of that in due course but rest assured we’ll be promoting all things turkey in the run up to December.
Moving on from Christmas, seeing as it is only October, we are continuing our year-round commitment to the next generation by adapting our usual in-person Poultry Industry Programme to become an online programme.
We always hear from PIP participants how valuable they find the programme to make connections with colleagues in the industry and make contacts that will serve them well in the future. I’m really pleased that we’ve been able to keep the programme running and that we’ve had such great participation and adaptation from the current participants.
It’s that positive feedback and discussion we’ve been having with the PIP, as well as our regular member meetings, that have reminded me just how valuable it is to get together as colleagues and friends to talk about the issues we are dealing with at the moment, whether that is professionally or personally.
I would encourage you all to bear this in mind as restrictions continue to tighten and the winter draws in, coupled with the challenges some are facing with current market conditions. Sometimes a message or a short phone call can be just the trick to lift someone’s mood or help them get something off their chest.