TASMANIA'S red meat producers now have their future success mapped out.
The Tasmanian red meat industry strategic plan was launched at Brickenden, near Longford, this week.
Tasmanian Red Meat Industry Council (TRMI) chairman Brett Hall said the industry needed to set timelines and goals for the plan's implementation.
"The big picture is evening out the supply into the market place, so we are supplying all year around," Mr Hall said.
"There is enough capacity there to be able to handle the larger supply times," he said.
Tasmania has two main abbatoirs, Greenhams at Smithton and JBS Swifts, Longford, which are supplemented by Tasmanian Quality Meats, at Cressy.
"Processors have been good in offering forward contracts, with premiums, for producers to supply during those leaner periods," Mr Hall said.
"It makes it worthwhile to put aside some fodder, silage, hay or a feed wedge to supply cattle when it is quieter."
The red meat industry plan was developed through consultations with all industry members, during the last 12 months.
It had three key themes, securing the industry's production base; improving market access; and information and communication.
The plan encompassed both domestic and export meat markets and included sheep, cattle and goat sectors. Mr Hall said.
"This strategic planning process aims to improve the sustainability of the Tasmanian red meat production system by encouraging innovation that will improve its economic viability but also focus on animal welfare, environmental management and social issues," he said.
Worldwide consumers had demonstrated an increasing interest in knowing how their food was produced.
"These commitments are not only ethically appropriate, but they will provide benefit for our industry and communities alike."
Although Tasmania held only a fraction of the nation's production capability, it maintained a solid position as a niche producer, he said.
''We're hormone growth promotant-free, we're GMO-free, grass-fed, we've got a clean, green image and we're taking advantage of our branding on our packaging, we're selling on that,'' Mr Hall said.
"The thing that came through from the consultation sessions was that processors have to be supplied 52 weeks of the year, not just seasonally."
Processing plants had been upgraded to cater for the sudden influx of cattle, when the King Island abbatoir closed down in 2012, he said.
"When that closed down, we had to absorb that volume into Tasmania, with 20 per cent of the cattle numbers, that's a fair bit to absorb," Mr Hall said.
JBS Swifts Mark Inglis said one of the biggest challenges for processors was keeping the workforce busy, all year.
JBS had invested heavily in branding it was good that producers and processors were now aligned.
"It's no good pulling in different directions," Mr Inglis said.
"Meat standards are the key thing - having compliant cattle and lambs, and producing something the customer wants."
"We embarked on program, three or four years ago, around value chain supply, getting out of the commodity area and starting to get our brands and products into niche, premium markets, so we could pass that reward back down to producers," he said.
Macquarie Franklin director Basil Doonan said the industry was heading in the right direction, with processors prepared to offer premiums for cattle, in the traditionally quiet season.
"If we can flatten the curve and make ourselves more profitable in that space, we can look at lifting capacity in the short term, with additional shifts in the meatworks," Mr Doonan said.
The Meat and Livestock Authority was now setting research priorities to fit with the strategic plan.
"It will be carried forward by the Tasmanian Farmers and Graziers Association, bringing together processors, producers and consultants, to look at what are the bottlenecks for Tasmania," Mr Doonan said.
