Welsh livestock farmers have to concentrate on producing and promoting high quality branded lamb to generate profit, delegates at the Hybu Cig Cymru (Meat Promotion Wales) conference were told last week (15 November)

Bill Joyce, Hybu Cig Cymru's marketing manager, insisted that it was not possible to use levy payers' money to control the market.

"We can't set prices, determine volumes or force people to buy Welsh products," Mr Joyce insisted. "But we can influence consumers to buy and provide leadership in developing new markets."

The most powerful tool available to achieve this was the brand. This was not simply a mark or logo, but was a collection of perceptions in the mind of the consumer, including distinctiveness and quality.

On the market Welsh lamb had to be seen as a premium product, more a single malt than a blended whisky.

As 61% of Welsh lamb was retailed in England, and 31% outside the UK, there were limited opportunities for volume growth and price improvements with Wales.

Investing in promotion worked. Television advertising of Welsh lamb in an area including Kent, Surrey and Hampshire had increased the percentage of consumers who would choose it over lamb from other countries from 21% in October 2005 to 43% in October this year.

His message to producers who complained about paying promotional levy was that nobody else was going to promote Welsh lamb. Stopping would make the product less visible in the market and demand would slump.

Michael Dundon, Dunbia's Paris-based export manager, said the slaughtering and processing company depended on a supply of consistently high quality lambs to be able to market branded premium products.

Currently only 13.8% of Welsh lambs met the conformation specification of premium markets in France, Belgium and Holland, and 17% were too fat.

But Welsh producers were ideally placed to satisfy increasing consumer demand for non-intensive, environmentally sustainable farming, good animal welfare and farm assurance.