THE Livestock and Meat Commission is inviting consumers to learn more about the positive farm-to-fork journey of Northern Ireland Farm Quality Assured (NIFQA) beef and lamb, through the relaunch of its multi-platform advertising campaign, Good Honest Food.

The travelogue-style campaign features local chef James Devine embarking on a journey around Northern Ireland to uncover the truth about the health, environmental and sustainable credentials of NIFQA beef and lamb.

LMC Interim Chief Executive Colin Smith said: “The Good Honest Food campaign is founded on independently-reviewed, scientific research that is discussed with and communicated by the experts.

“The campaign is built around four key messages: health and nutrition, care for the environment, responsible beef farming, and creating enjoyable dishes from different cuts of beef.”

As the campaign unfolds, industry experts – Dr. Steven Morrison, Head of Sustainable Livestock Production at AFBI Hillsborough; and Dr. Ruth Price, Clinical Trials Manager in the School of Biomedical Sciences at Ulster University – will answer some of the biggest questions consumers have about beef and lamb production and health and nutrition.

Hoping to strike a chord with consumers once more, Colin explained: “Previous bursts of the campaign resonated well with NI consumers.

“Independent tracking research has confirmed consumers who had seen the campaign were significantly more likely to purchase NIFQA beef and lamb.

“Consumer eating habits have remained relatively stable over the past five years, and our most recent research highlights that currently more than 90 per cent of consumers report to eat beef.

“Positive feedback on lamb was also forthcoming. The Commission is pleased that year on year, more consumers report to look for the FQAS logo when purchasing lamb, with a marked 20 percentage point increase since 2020.”

Hoping to build on the success of previous campaign bursts, Good Honest Food will run across TV, radio, outdoor and digital platforms.

The opening tranche of the campaign will showcase all that is good about beef with the focus shifting to lamb in the latter part of the burst.

“Beef is a staple part of a healthy, balanced diet for many consumers, and we will showcase its versatility over the coming weeks, outlining different cuts and highlighting it as a red meat accessible at a variety of price points.

“Strategically, it makes absolute sense to bring lamb into the spotlight in the run up to a number of well recognised celebrations, notably St. Patrick’s Day, Easter and Mothers’ Day.

“Lamb is a popular choice for get-togethers with family and friends.

“So, whether the star dish is a roast leg of lamb, or silverside of beef, we want to ensure consumers have access to recipes and information which enables them to make informed dietary choices, and ultimately enjoy tasty, high-quality red meat.”

The LMC campaign will run until the end of March.