Preventing a crisis is better than curing one.
There is a theme that haunts the poultry sector and that represents a constant risk: the collapse of consumer “confidence”.
In this regard, the following text is aimed at the poultry sector, but is also designed to make consumers aware of their power to choose and to delve deeper into the information that reaches them, especially when this concerns their diet and access to healthy, economical, controlled and above all available forms of nutrition such as those provided by the poultry sector.
There are many largely overlooked aspects that complicate the management and prevention of this critical aspect (trust), which is far from marginal and involves high risks of consequent economic losses and shortages of poultry meat and eggs.
First among these is the fact that the entire supply chain (from the top down) communicates a lot with itself, but never or very little with the consumer. Of course it happens that it transmits information, but never hesitating to consider how credible its information is “today” in the eyes of those who for years have only received information of the opposite sign.
It must be said that the commercials of each individual producer cannot be defined as “information” or even dialogues. They are simple attempts at positioning of a company that competes with others that deal with the same product.
We need counter-information that is not “reactive” and that is also capable of maintaining a very high capacity to protect the reputation of the sector with the awareness that the consumer is the true and only employer of the entire sector (of every sector).
Let’s take stock of how it would be appropriate to prepare the sector to prevent and manage reputational crises:
- prevent your “universe” from being unknown to the public;
- avoid that the only ones talking about your universe are other outsiders;
- make information easily available, avoiding unclear and misunderstood language;
- be able and ready to produce timely, transparent and honest communications (to avoid a loss of trust);
- have a unified communications strategy for the sector;
- learn to deal with the problem of engagement procedures by entrusting their development to trained people and not entrusting them to “insiders” unless they are people capable of managing an independent critical spirit;
- recognize the problem of unresolved regulators, that is, people who remain uncertain and suspended, not knowing how to make a decision , due to a habitual, established and unconsciously crystallized attitude, deriving from a lack of stimuli, weakness of spirit, insecurity or inexperience ;
- become aware of the role of “competence”;
- structure the structural capacity to learn from previous experiences and incorporate them;
- recognize the role of fear (one’s own and that of stakeholders) and emotions in crisis communication;
- take into account and be able to deal with “public perceptions” by anticipating or calming them with timely, precise and reasoned information;
- to realize that every company or person is inserted in a world where everything is virtually interconnected and interdependent.
Incident management must be considered as a prerequisite for the reliability and trustworthiness of one’s business model in every company that cares about itself and must be done, in a professional and conscious way, as a constant activity to be exercised in order to be able to consider adverse events as foreseeable or to be foreseen and therefore addressable in order to protect one’s reputation.
There are no unexpected, incomprehensible, uncontrollable and inevitable events, not even in extremely complex systems, provided that those who govern these systems do so with a broad, analytical, far-sighted and responsible vision.
However, in the absence of a predetermined plan, any small adverse event can generate a chain of events that can interact with each other, despite efforts to avoid them.
Events that initially seem trivial can cascade and multiply in unpredictable ways, creating a much larger catastrophic event.
Conclusions: the indications just listed are part of the skills offered by Pietro Greppi also through the MAC tool and Nutriamocidibuonsenso.it.
So prevention is better than cure,
because if Aviagen and Cobb disappeared…
To understand how relevant the numerous warnings and the commitment of moreaboutchicken.com and nutriamocidibuonsenso.it are, it is necessary to think in excess. It is necessary to hypothesize for the sake of argument that a catastrophic event will occur. This does not mean being pessimistic, but rather being able to imagine events and prepare to manage them as well as prevent them.
Let us therefore imagine, for the sake of hyperbole, that the criticisms and battles waged by anti-farming activists succeed in determining an awareness among the consumer public who would then gradually desert the consumption of products derived from the poultry sector.
Zero consumption must be imagined
to understand what this would mean on a global level.
Zero consumption is in fact an event hoped for by the detractors of livestock farming that could be generated slowly or abruptly.
Hopefully it will never happen, but it could still happen.
Whatever the likelihood of this event, it is important for the industry to ask itself what it would mean to step outside itself and look clearly at what would happen.
And it is good that consumers also understand the consequences. They should be made aware of how the poultry sector operates, why and how.
The detractors of intensive farming are already aware that everything comes from two leading companies: Aviagen and Cobb-Vantress are world leaders in the poultry genetics sector, as also widely illustrated by research by Pietro Greppi published at this link to the research.
Simply put, Aviagen and Cobb-Vantress specialize in the development, breeding and supply of broiler and turkey breeders .
They do not directly produce meat or eggs for consumption, but supply breeding animals to poultry companies around the world.
Their main activity is genetic research and development to constantly improve the characteristics of animals, such as:
- Growth rate: Animals that grow the fastest.
- Feed efficiency: animals that convert feed into meat better.
- Meat quality: desirable characteristics of the meat produced.
- Disease resistance: more robust animals and less susceptible to diseases.
- Animal welfare: pay attention to features that promote animal welfare.
These companies play a critical role in the global poultry industry, helping to ensure a sustainable and affordable supply of protein for the world’s population.
The closure of Aviagen and Cobb, whether or not caused by the activities of poultry critics, would have a catastrophic and far-reaching impact on the global poultry industry, including Italy.
Here’s why
Domination of the breeder market
Aviagen and Cobb are the two world leaders in the supply of broiler breeders. Together, they have a huge market share, estimated between 70% and 90% globally. These companies do not directly produce the chickens that end up on our tables, but the “parent stock” that are then raised by farmers to produce broiler chicks.
Monopoly/Oligopoly of the Gene Pool
The genetics developed by Aviagen (brands such as Ross, Arbor Acres, Indian River) and Cobb (Cobb 500) are the result of decades of research and selection to achieve desirable traits such as rapid growth, high feed efficiency (less feed per pound of meat), good slaughter performance and disease resistance. These genetic lines are extremely complex and cannot be easily or quickly replicated by others.
Direct consequences of the closure
Lack of chicks
The most immediate consequence would be a drastic reduction, or even a complete stoppage, in the supply of breeders. Without these “parents”, farms would not be able to produce broiler chicks, leading to a shortage of chickens on the market.
Exponential increase in prices
Chicken shortages would skyrocket prices for consumers, making chicken a luxury rather than an affordable protein.
Production collapse
Many farms, unable to supply themselves with breeders, would be forced to drastically reduce production or, in the worst case, close down. This would have a devastating impact on employment and the entire supply chain.
Loss of efficiency
Even if other smaller or new companies enter the market, they will not have the same efficiency and genetic performance as Aviagen and Cobb. This would result in longer breeding cycles, higher feed consumption and, consequently, higher production costs and lower sustainability.
Health problems
Aviagen and Cobb’s genetic research also contributes to disease resistance. Their closure could, in the long term, lead to increased vulnerability of poultry populations to pathogens, with potential epidemics and further production disruptions.
Technology addiction
The modern poultry industry is heavily dependent on the genetic innovations of these companies. Their disappearance would represent a huge loss in terms of know-how and scientific progress in the sector.
Impact on Italy and other countries
Italy, like most countries, is heavily dependent on these multinationals for its breeders.
The closure would have direct repercussions on poultry companies around the world, which would face the same supply, cost and sustainability issues.
This would be an unprecedented crisis in the sector, with significant consequences for food security, the national economy, consumption habits and the domestic economy of families who today rely on the availability of access to quality proteins at affordable prices made possible by the consolidated global poultry supply chain.
In summary, the closure of Aviagen and Cobb would be an unprecedented event for the poultry industry. globally, leading to a deep crisis characterized by product shortages, price increases, company bankruptcies and, last but not least, a significant step backwards in terms of efficiency and sustainability of the production of accessible and controlled chicken meat.
An approach and a solution to this kind of risks has been published by Pietro Greppi at this link:
https://moreaboutchicken.com/feeding-the-planet-toward-a-new-paradigm-for-the-poultry-industry/
