ABSTRACT
73Sweden has been a net exporter of meat products for almost two decades. Incorporation of isolated soy protein ingredients in processed meat products offers an opportunity to raise export earnings, to lower domestic retail prices, and to lessen pressure on livestock production in the event of shortages or increases in consumer demand.
Production arid marketing in Sweden are governed by a unique system of price supports and subsidies. These reflect a wide range of social, economic, environmental and national security interests.
For instance, safeguarding the country's food supply from interruption became an important component of Sweden's defense policy following severe shortages during World War I. Maintaining self-sufficiency in basic foodstuffs is a primary policy goal. These government policies are expected to continue. They have protected high domestic meat prices in order to achieve production and farm income goals.
Measures, such as incorporation of isolated soy protein ingredients in processed meats, which would reduce the cost of meat products to consumers while maintaining producer income at desired levels, also could reduce budgetary pressures on the government.
Naturally, government policies affect retail and export market activity and product distribution. Today, approximately 40 percent of Swedish domestic meat consumption consists of cured, processed and canned meats.
Beef carcasses and pork cuts make up about 90 percent of Sweden's total meat exports. Processed products, such as sausages, other meat preparations, and other products now account for a very small share of total meat exports—between 1 and 2 percent in recent years.
Increases in meat exports could offer significant benefits to the Swedish economy. While very small relative to total exports, the meat sector is relatively large in comparison to the country's trade balance and balance of payments in recent years.
This analysis indicates that using isolated soy protein in processed meats (sausages) in Sweden's meat industry would produce a 31 percent increase in final product yield from a given meat input, and a retail price reduction of about 7 percent.
Addition of soy protein isolates to processed ham would produce a 5 percent extension of green ham input, lower ingredient costs, and reduce retail prices about 3.2 percent.
Processed meat products could become a significant contributor to Sweden's export earnings while also increasing the supply of meat products available for domestic consumption.
74By increasing the output of processed meat products and trimming ingredient costs, isolated soy proteins present Sweden with an opportunity to increase export earnings from processed meat products through reducing the differential between domestic and international prices.
Reduced ingredient costs for reformulated products also would bring Swedish prices more in line with those in the world market, thus reducing or conceivably even eliminating the need for export subsidies on these products.
The total trade gain to Sweden from use of isolated soy protein ingredients is projected at about 576 million kronor annually.
As discussed elsewhere in this volume, use of isolated soy protein ingredients, by reducing the proportion of animal products in processed meat production, also offers savings in all inputs required for meat production.
At the current level of carcass utilization in processed products, introduction of soy protein isolates in Sweden's processed meat industry would save nearly 41,000 tons of pork annually, or the equivalent of 164,000 tons of grain.
While soy protein isolate would have to be imported, the relative quantity required to substitute for the supplies of fuel and fertilizer needed to support a given level of meat product production and consumption is quite low.
