Professor named Chair of Red Tractor Beef and Lamb Technical Advisory Committee

Posted 22 July

A Harper Adams University expert has been named Chair of the Beef and Lamb Technical Advisory Committee for Red Tractor, the UK’s most recognised food assurance scheme.

Professor Jude Capper is the ABP Chair of Sustainable Beef and Sheep Production at the University and has nearly two decades of experience assessing the sustainability of livestock production systems.

She is a Fellow of the Royal Agricultural Society, a Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Butchers, and has held a range of roles in industry bodies – she is currently Vice-Chair of the National Beef Association and Chair of the Route Panel for Agriculture, Environment and Animal Care at Skills England.

Explaining her new role, Professor Capper said: “Red Tractor is the largest food assurance scheme in the UK, reassuring millions of consumers that food is produced safely and responsibly.

“Each Red Tractor sector is governed by a Sector Board, advised a Technical Advisory Committee (TAC) - I am the new Chair for the Beef and Lamb TAC.

“The Committee is made up from representatives from across the supply chain to ensure balance and fairness and is charged with determining technical standards – that is, the ones that producers have to comply with to be Red Tractor assured.”

John Dracup, Chair of the Beef & Lamb Sector Board said: “We’re delighted to welcome Jude as Chair of the Beef & Lamb TAC at Red Tractor. Jude joins the organisation as we begin work to identify changes that will ensure assurance remains effective, efficient and valued by everyone in the supply chain.”

With a long career in research and industry, Professor Capper believes the work of Red Tractor is hugely important – and vital to get right.

She said: “A sustainable, resilient food supply chain is dependent on trust - from the farmers who produce food through the processors and retailers to the consumers who buy it in the supermarket.

“To ensure that the UK food supply chain is sustainable, we have to implement evidence-based, appropriate, applicable food assurance standards that are transparent and therefore maintain trust for all involved.

“We know that our farm assurance schemes are incredibly robust compared to other global standards, but we have to continue to examine their relevance and applicability and to ensure that they help producers to be better and more profitable, rather than adding to the burden of paperwork.

“As global markets continue to put pressure on UK agriculture, we must demonstrate that we are making the right choices with respect to animal health and welfare, environmental protection, labour, documentation and food safety.

“Chairing the Beef and Lamb Technical Advisory Committee is an exciting opportunity to help make that happen - and one that I’m delighted to take on.”

As Chair of the Beef and Lamb TAC, Jude will also sit on the Beef and Lamb Sector Board – read more about Red Tractor’s governance here.