Customers looking for pork at the Freson Bros. IGA in Barrhead now have the opportunity to buy meat that can be traced back to the farm where it was raised and slaughtered.
The Freson Bros. chain is the second supermarket in the province to carry Sturgeon Valley Pork’s new line of meat, under the DNA TraceBack label, that is identified as homegrown, hormone-free and animal byproduct-free.
Using technology pioneered by Ireland’s IdentiGEN, Sturgeon Valley Pork takes a DNA sample from the meat and compiles it in a database. The meat is then randomly sampled in store and compared to the database to ensure it is as local as it claims, said Sturgeon Valley Pork assistant general manager Herman Simons.
“It’s basically the tool we use in order to verify and make sure that the pork we deliver to the consumer through Freson Bros. is traceable,” he said.
At the Barrhead Freson Bros., manager Aaron Coutts said the new product has been warmly received.
“It’s so good because it’s local farmers,” he said. “There are actually people who shop in the store who know it’s their pigs because Sturgeon Valley is the only place they send their pigs.”
At the Freson Bros. head office, company meat manager Rob Gustafson said the chain got involved with DNA traceable pork because of what it could mean for the peace of mind of its customers.
“How can we provide a credible statement to our customers that actually proves that, yes, this is Alberta pork and, yes, it is local,” he said.
When they heard about DNA traceable pork, he said the company realized what it could mean.
“We got really excited about this because, I mean, shucks, there’s nobody else that was doing this,” he said.
Freson Bros. first started carrying DNA TraceBack pork in June 2010, but did not label it as such, Gustafson said. This was done to ensure that Sturgeon Valley Pork could supply enough meat to the chain’s 15 locations.
Once it became clear Sturgeon Valley Pork could do that, Freson Bros. formally launched the brand under the new label. That was two months ago, he said.
Since then, he said customers have been very happy with the knowledge that they can trace where their meat came from. Furthermore, he said the company is happy to provide that knowledge.
“In today’s world, we’ve got to be honest, people say one thing but the reality’s showing another thing,” he said. “We wanted to ensure that the customers were getting 100 per cent Alberta pork, just like the statement says.”
Back in Barrhead, Coutts agreed with Gustafson’s assertion.
“Customers are extremely happy,” he said, adding it’s a win-win situation because the prices have not increased, the meat is local and it can now be traced to prove that it’s local.
“It’s a great initiative that they’ve started with us and it’s something I’m proud to be a part of,” he said.
