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A campaign to promote Lion Quality egg products seems to be proving successful, with a number of new suppliers adopting the Lion code, an active marketing strategy underway and indications that there is strong demand from consumers for egg products that bear the trusted Lion mark.

The Ranger reported last year that BEPA (the British Egg Products Association) was planning a 'Best of British' campaign to promote Lion Quality egg products. The association's stated aim was to persuade more food manufacturers to buy British Lion – and it said that free range eggs would play an important part in any future success of Lion egg products. BEPA chairman Clive Frampton has now expressed his delight that the association has been able to attract new suppliers to the code.

"I'm delighted that the majority of the UK's egg products processors are now Lion accredited, as this reflects healthy customer demand for Lion egg products," he said "The food manufacturing industry wants top quality British ingredients and has recognised the distinct food safety and consumer benefits of Lion, and is now making the switch with confidence."

BEPA has announced that Lion egg products producers now account for 70 per cent of the UK's egg products production. Six of Britain's largest suppliers are now fully certified producers of British Lion Quality egg products. BEPA said that three companies - D Wise, Lowrie Foods and Ready Egg Products – were amongst an influx of businesses that had successfully completed audits to join existing Lion egg products members like Bumble Hole, Framptons and Noble Foods.

The launch of BEPA's 'Best of British' campaign followed the results of a study which showed that imports had grown by 40 per cent since 2001 and more than 50 per cent of food manufacturers were buying imported egg products. The study also showed that more than 80 per cent of consumers felt that using British eggs within manufactured products was important. They were unaware that almost a third of these products contained imported eggs.

The views of consumers were confirmed through recent research carried out for Lion. The research, which was undertaken following a number of food poisoning outbreaks caused by imported eggs, found that although consumers were generally not too concerned whether food products were British or not, they were concerned about the origin of eggs. Respondents assumed the eggs in products such as quiche would be British and were "shocked" to find that such products often contained imported eggs. Consumers felt the use of foreign eggs compromised the quality and value of the products they were buying. Consumers could not understand why fresh 'local' products, such as eggs, should be imported. They felt that products, such as eggs and red meat, which had been the subject of food safety scares, should be produced to the food safety guarantees they believed British quality standards offered.

Two people died as a result of a salmonella outbreak in the United Kingdom last year – an outbreak that was linked to imported Spanish eggs. The outbreak involved a total of 14 clusters in England and Wales. Seven of the 14 clusters were linked to Chinese or Thai restaurants, three to cafes, one to an Italian restaurant, one to a kebab shop and another to a mobile food vendor. An outbreak at the Piers View Care Home in Sunderland resulted in three members of staff and five residents being taken ill. Two of the residents subsequently died in hospital. Figures released by the Food Standards Agency showed that a total of 443 cases of salmonella enteridis phage type (PT) 14b had been reported to the FSA during 2009 compared to 137 in 2008.

The Lion research also indicated that more than 60 per cent of consumers wanted the country of origin of eggs to be highlighted on a menu. It showed that four out of every five consumers wanted to see British eggs being used in food service outlets.

Andrew Parker, chairman of the British Egg Industry Council, said, "Salmonella in British eggs is a thing of the past, thanks to the food safety safeguards in the British Lion code. However, food service outlets may still be putting their customers at risk by using imported eggs that are not produced to the same standards as British Lion eggs." The British egg industry wants caterers to use honest labelling and show the country of origin of eggs on menus. Andrew Parker said, "Caterers have a duty of care to the people who eat on their premises and if they use imported eggs, they should at the very least own up to it."

The 'Best of British' campaign has been set up with the strong support of several leading food companies, including McDonalds and Tryton Foods, which manufactures Aunt Bessie's Yorkshire Puddings. BEPA has invested money to fund advertising, supported by a wide-reaching marketing support campaign that includes direct mail, as well as food manufacturer and retailer briefings.
Promotional work for this year includes online advertising on Food Manufacture.com. The advertisements went live last month, coinciding with the re-launch of the Food Manufacture website. They are set to continue until the end of the year. BEPA is also producing a supplement within Food Manufacture magazine, highlighting the benefits of Lion egg products. There will be promotional work in the magazines British Baker and the Grocer.

One of the biggest imminent changes for the egg industry is the EU's ban on the use of conventional cages, which is due to come into force in January 2012. BEPA says the ban will have a big effect on the egg products market over the coming year. The association says it will be talking to manufacturers and retailers about the implications of 2012 for their businesses. Many observers suspect that some EU states will fail to meet the 2012 deadline for the conventional cage ban. The UK industry is concerned that if such states are given extra time to comply with the legislation, they could export egg produced cheaply in conventional cages into the British market.

"Communicating the 2012 legislation changes to potential customers in the food manufacturing and retail industry is central to our marketing activity this year. We are urging people to 'Look for the Lion' to ensure they are not caught out by impending legislation in the egg industry – something which is a serious concern for many manufacturers as many other European countries may not be able to meet the deadline," said a BEPA spokesman.

BEPA says that demand for egg products is strong and is expected to grow in the second half of 2010. It will be seeking to ensure that the demand is met by British egg producers by encouraging more food manufacturers and caterers to use Lion branded egg product.