Discover our Quality ControlsSourcing meatAt Bernard Matthews Farms we know that being confident about the origin of our meat
is as important to our consumers as it is to us, whether it's the turkey at the
heart of our business which accounts for over 90% of our product range, or the small
percentage of chicken and pork products we also prepare.
Because we thoroughly check the production standards of all our partners, we
are confident about the supplier management of their breeder farms, hatcheries,
feed mills, rearing farms and meat preparation. This enables us to be completely
confident about our sourcing choices. The success of these relationships with our
partners outside the UK has enabled us to keep supporting our UK turkey farming
operations, and stay competitive in the face of the large-scale imports of competitively
priced meat into the UK by our competitors. We are however also exploring how we can competitively buy British chicken and
pork, as we strive to increase our already strong commitment to British Agriculture
and farming even further over the coming years.  Example ‘statement of origin’ label, as shown on our cooked meat products, detailing the product is made in, and the turkey is sourced from East Anglia. Bernard Matthews Farms packaging carries a country of origin statement*. This clearly
states the provenance of the meat, which we believe will be more informative than
the current practice of stating only where the meat is packed. *(a small number of products are still in the market in old packaging without
a country of origin statement). Certifications in detailGrowing turkeys is quite a complicated and specialised thing to do, and so there
are lots of interested parties who help to ensure that this is done correctly and
to a high standard. We adhere to a wide range of industry standards and have been
awarded many certifications across both our food preparation facilities and our
farms: QBT: Quality British TurkeyThis standard is awarded to turkey farmers who breed and rear turkeys in Britain,
and to manufacturers of turkey products who use British meat. They must also ensure
that high levels of animal welfare, environmental and food safety practices are
adhered to; also that detailed auditing to a very high standard is undertaken annually
on every farm. These inspections are carried out independently by SAI Global (EFSIS).
Assured Food Standards (Red Tractor) This scheme is managed by Assured
Food Standards. Production is checked not only at the farm level but also all the
way through until it is packed. This ensures that food safety and hygiene standards
are maintained as well as standards for animal welfare and the environment. The Red Tractor logo can only be used by farmers, food companies and food retailers
licensed with Assured Food Standards who meet a set of criteria including food safety
and hygiene, and traceability production methods; all the ingredients have to come
from assured farms using one of their eligible farm schemes. Quality British Turkey and the Red Tractor now have a combined logo that guarantees
high standards of food safety, traceability and bird welfare. It is the only fully
accredited turkey standard that meets the UK Accreditation Scheme standards and
EU standards. European Food Safety Inspection Service (EFSIS)One of the leading independent global inspection and certification expert groups,
who audit our farms and production sites to ensure only the highest standards across
all operations are maintained. British Poultry Council (BPC)As a member of the British Poultry Council, we work closely with other chicken
and turkey producers to actively promote the standards to which turkeys are reared
within Britain. The BPC works closely with many bodies such as DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs), the FSA (Food Standards Agency), the Meat Hygiene Service, and Trading Standards to maintain quality and enforcement.
We also work closely with: And are members of: Additionally, we have ISO 4001 accreditation across both of our food preparation sites in Norfolk and Suffolk, which is audited regularly by external bodies. This means we meet the British Standard for management of environmental risks; we are continually improving our Environmental Management System and monitoring our environmental performance
in terms of water, energy use and waste production. Finally, we have our own accredited laboratory based in Norfolk, which carries out microbiological and nutritional testing to ensure our products are safe to eat and the nutritional information on our packaging is correct.
Our product recipesWe're constantly striving to improve our product recipes across our whole range
to get the best possible balance of taste and health.
If you would like to get in touch for any further information about quality standards
or product recipes, please contacts us.
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