Export drive to beat grip of supermarkets

NBA director Kim Haywood said that if processors in this country put more effort into securing much-needed export sales the "iron grip" the major retailers currently have on the beef industry could be broken.

She believed that, with tighter global supplies and more favourable exchange rates, it should be much easier than it has been in the recent past to increase exports.

"The all-round stranglehold inflicted by supermarkets can be broken if more high-quality UK beef is sold into EU countries where supplies are already getting short - and other carcase portions are distributed to willing buyers elsewhere," said Haywood.