The nutrient L-carnitine, which is found in red meat and used as a dietary supplement, is associated with cardiovascular disease in people and causes cardiovascular disease in mice, according to a new study by US researchers. The results of the study, published today in the Advanced Online version of the journal ‘Nature Medicine’, point to L-carnitine, rather than saturated fat and cholesterol, as explaining the link between consumption of red meat and cardiovascular disease. The research suggests... ...Read more »

Nestle Australia-owned Jenny Craig has assured its Australian consumers that there is no need to worry about horse meat in their ready-made weight loss meals. Jenny Craig Managing Director Amy Smith told Australian Food News today that there was no horse meat in its products, following news earlier this week that Nestle had found traces of horse meat in some other pasta brands sold in Italy and Spain. “In Australia and New Zealand, Jenny Craig sources 100 per cent of its red meat from Australia,”... ...Read more »

Meat and Livestock Australia has launched a campaign designed to showcase the red meat industry’s environmental credentials. ‘Target 100’ is based on 100 environmentally related initiatives the industry is undertaking to ensure its cattle, sheep and goat production systems are sustainable. The aim of the campaign is for the Australian red meat supply chain to be entirely sustainable by 2020. The 100 initiatives include research, development and extension programs, sharing of ideas, and use... ...Read more »

Researchers at Deakin University, in Victoria, have found that eating less than the recommended amount of red meat is related to depression and anxiety in women. Deakin University’s Associate Professor Felice Jacka investigated the relationship between the consumption of beef and lamb and the presence of depressive and anxiety disorders in more than 1,000 women from the Geelong region of the State of Victoria. The results of the study have been published in the current edition of the journal ‘Psychotherapy... ...Read more »

A study published by Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals, suggests that eating more red meat appears to be associated with an increased risk of all-cause mortality and death from cardiovascular disease and cancer. The study, by researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health, in Boston, analysed data from 37,698 men and 83,644 women over 28 years. Researchers documented 23,926 deaths, including 5,910 from cardiovascular disease and 9,464 deaths from cancer. The researchers... ...Read more »

For over 40 years, scientists and physicians have thought eating a high-fibre diet lowered a person’s risk of diverticulosis. A new US study of 2,104 people shows this may not be accurate. The study, which was conducted by researchers at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at the Chapel Hill School of Medicine found that eating high fibre diets raised, as opposed to lowered, the risks of developing diverticulosis. The study also suggests the commonly-held belief that constipation increases the... ...Read more »

A report on foreign investment in Australia from the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) has found that foreign firms accounted for ownership of about half of the nation’s dairy, sugar and red meat sectors. The report, commissioned by the Australian Government’s Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC), also says that current foreign ownership of agricultural land, business and water entitlements in Australia is comparable... ...Read more »

Japan is proving to be a safe haven for Australian beef exports, with the volume of red meat being sent to that market holding firm amid the current global financial turmoil.Beef exports to Australia’s biggest beef export market remain at similar levels to those of a year ago, before the financial crisis hit. Year to date exports of Australian beef to Japan have totalled 305,774 tonnes, down just three percent compared to 314,493 tonnes exported in the same period last year. Meat & Livestock... ...Read more »