Update from the Pork Sector Council Chair (July 2025)

What a time to be British. There has probably never been a time when this statement would have universal endorsement across the country, but the optimist today might point to a fantastic summer so far.

A record-breaking representation of home talent at Wimbledon, and many other high-profile sporting events to back national teams over the rest of the year. Even the political dramas seem fairly low octane compared to what has transpired over the last decade or so.

All of which is a clunky way of trying to crowbar in what I really want to introduce, which is: what a time for British pork!

Marketing campaign success

AHDB’s skilled copywriters and communications experts are crying into their coffees at this point. Clumsy and corny as this undoubtedly is, the message behind it is that at its meeting in late June, the Pork Sector Council reviewed the performance of this year’s February TV advertising campaign, alongside our always-on social media efforts. And there is significant evidence that points to this being British pork’s time.

AHDB’s new ‘This is British pork. But not as you know it’ marketing campaign features a fresh TV advert and a new suite of digital marketing assets. It follows on the back of an incredibly strong ‘Feed your family for less with British pork’ campaign, which ran for several years.

The new marketing message highlights the versatility and health benefits of using fresh pork at mealtimes across the week. Its core aim is to get consumers to rethink pork’s place in meal rotations, presenting quick, healthy and tasty dishes for the whole family.

The early signs are that this campaign is outperforming what was already a powerful campaign that preceded it. It has been seen more than 46.2 million times on social media and reached 43 million adults.

The campaign increased purchase intent for pork among Gen Z consumers (18–25-year olds) – with 8 out of 10 agreeing that the campaign “made me think more positively about cooking and eating British pork”.

Across the board, and compared with the period before the campaign started, more people believe that pork is nutritious and offers good value for money and enjoy the taste of the product.

This drove the increased intent to purchase pork – particularly pork mince, which was the hero cut promoted.

British messaging cuts through

Perhaps the most encouraging output from this review was that ‘British’ was cutting through as the key feature that grabbed viewers’ attention.

It was British pork that was recalled as being versatile. It was British pork that was perceived to be high quality and has many uses. This is incredibly important in reinforcing the strong preference for most supermarkets and their customers to choose home-grown pork products.

The challenge for sector council, and AHDB itself, is to drive execution and effectiveness further. It is possible that subtle adjustments could emphasise the great value offered by British pork even more, at a time when other red meat prices are soaring.

We have also significantly improved coordination between the supply chain and AHDB’s marketing team to maximise the impact our campaigns have on volumes of pork being sold when advertising activity is at its peak.

It feels right to be bullish on British pork.

No place for complacency

However, it is equally important that, as we help support the vision for British pork over the coming years, we do not overlook the fundamentals of protecting the industry where we can.

The recent outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in continental Europe offer a sharp reminder of what risks lie in wait.

AHDB has a comprehensive programme of events and resources to help protect against, and prepare for, any serious disease outbreak, and particularly for African swine fever (ASF).

That said, it behoves none of us to slip into complacency that we are doing all we can.

To that end, sector council has asked AHDB’s experts to relook at what more we can do to protect the industry’s ability to trade domestically and internationally is not derailed by disease outbreaks.

Changes to executive team

Levy payers may have noted that several changes will be taking place over the second half of the year in the executive team at AHDB.

In recent weeks, AHDB announced the appointment of a new Chair, Emily Norton, and the resignations of both its Chief Executive, Graham Wilkinson, and Pork Sector Director Angela Christison.

I am delighted to add my welcome to Emily as Chair of the AHDB board. She will bring fresh thinking and different perspectives to both an organisation and wider agriculture industry that are facing periods of fundamental change.

I am also disappointed to be losing the colleagueship of Graham and Angela. Both have been agents of positive change in AHDB and are a loss to levy payers’ interests. Yet, change is a natural phenomenon in all businesses and organisations, and it is important to look forward with an open mind to what comes next.

Plans are well under way to transition to a new team, and I look forward to hearing the new ideas and insights of those who join us.

We have Angela as part of the core pork team for a while yet, so I will reflect on her contribution to the pork sector at a later date.

However, I cannot sign off this letter without noting the fantastic news that my sector council colleague Hugh Crabtree was awarded the MBE in the latest King’s Birthday Honours. It is tremendously well deserved, reflecting a lifetime of work in the sector.

I have come to value and respect his counsel since taking on the Pork Sector Council Chair role, and as a result I am convinced that the award is fully merited. Well done, Hugh.