17 October 2024

4 minute read

By: Global Ag Media

Europe

Direct farm sales and mobile on-farm slaughtering are closely linked. There are already around 150 farms and service providers in Germany that practise this concept successfully, according to a recent press release from EuroTier. This is why the DLG (German Agricultural Society), organiser of the EuroTier exhibition, has dedicated an “Expert Stage” to this topic at this year's EuroTier. 

The world's largest trade fair for professional animal husbandry and livestock management will take place from 12 to 15 November at the exhibition centre in Hanover, Germany. On some 220,000 square metres of exhibition space across 13 halls, visitors will have access to a comprehensive technical programme with themed spotlights, expert stages, conferences and industry events, true to this year's guiding theme: ‘We innovate animal farming’.

Mobile slaughtering offers a suitable concept for regional and direct farm sales, as slaughtering takes place either on the farm of origin or at a nearby abattoir. A growing number of different mobile slaughtering units and concepts opening up new paths for customised business structures and marketing opportunities. 

Extensive program for mobile slaughtering and direct farm sales

EuroTier 2024 will offer visitors a comprehensive program covering the main aspects of mobile slaughtering of poultry, cattle and pigs. The topic will be presented on DLG’s Studio Stage in Hall 13. Expert speakers will present practical examples, marketing channels and decision-making aids to support the purchase or use of a mobile slaughter unit.

In addition to the presentations, visitors will be able to exchange ideas with manufacturers and operators on site.

Visitors will gain an overview of the legal requirements and discover what marketing concepts are available. Farmers can learn how to establish viable mobile slaughtering operations.

Presentations on mobile slaughtering at EuroTier 2024

In Germany the legal situation regarding the approval and operation of mobile slaughter systems is often challenging.

Alexander Kern, an organic farmer from Germany, will be presenting his experience from one of the first EU-approved fully mobile poultry slaughter units, which has been in operation in the Odenwald region since 2023. The is now used to market processed poultry meat directly to consumers and retailers. This presentation will take place on the DLG Studio stage on Tuesday 12 November at 16:30 in hall 13. This opens up many interesting new products and sales channels, particularly for direct farm sales, but also presents a whole host of legal challenges. Kern will explore these in his presentation.

Ralf Remmert from Prignitzer Landschwein GmbH in Brandenburg, Germany, will be presenting the background, challenges and future visions for the farm slaughter of pigs in his talk at the Expert Stage in Hall 13 on Thursday, 14 November at 15:00. The modular, semi-stationary slaughter unit for the farm slaughter of pigs is intended to fill the gap in mobile pig slaughtering in the future. With a slaughtering capacity of around sixty animals per day, it could represent a competitive and economically viable solution for the mobile slaughtering of pigs in the future.

Ruwen Hehner, farm manager, and Henry Stathmann, official veterinarian from the Uckermark, Germany, will be giving a presentation in Hall 13 at the DLG Studio Stage on Wednesday, 13 November at 11:00 a.m. on how successful cooperation between the farm and the authorities can be achieved and how grazing cattle can be implemented successfully and safely.

Mobile slaughter as a service? Alexander Hezner, master butcher from Bavaria, Germany, will present his successful business model at the DLG Studio Stage on Wednesday, 13 November at 12:00 noon and explain his business reasons, his passion for the trade and his plans to expand his business further.

Peter Brandmeier and his team from ‘IG Schlachtung mit Achtung’ in Germany have brought a mobile slaughter unit onto the market, which consists of a fixing device, video surveillance, hydraulic carriage and closed room for bleeding. Their slaughter unit was subsidised by the state of Baden-Württemberg, Germany, and has been successfully in use for several years. The sophisticated design of the system takes particular account of EU legal requirements. He will detail his experiences in the construction and use of the mobile slaughter unit ‘MSE 200A’ as well as on practical operation and marketing channels in a presentation on Friday, 15 November at 15:30 at the DLG Studio Stage.