On Tuesday 19 April 2016, Cactus celebrated twenty years of its beef label created in cooperation with 150 farmers in the Grand Duchy.

The 'Cactus Rëndfleesch vum Lëtzebuerger Bauer' ('Cactus Beef from Luxembourgish Farmers') label was first established in July 1996 through a quality charter between Cactus and the Fédération des Herdbooks Luxembourgeois as a means of creating a climate of confidence for the consumer.

The label, which was the first label to be approved by the Luxembourg State in 1998, started out with 182 farmers, two abattoirs, 3 commissioners and Cactus and has continued to be based on the aspects of food safety, respect for livelistock and environmental protection. These are enforced through regular quality checks made at each stage of the process, from farming to distribution; careful monitoring of the animals' welfare in terms of livestock conditions and minimal transport; guaranteed traceability of each piece of beef through the provision of the animal's identity number, age and breed which is indicated on the consumer label; environmental protection through sustainable management practices which reduce pollution of the land, water air and energy; and regular bacteriological and microbiological analysis and farms inspections to ensure food safety and that the meat is marketed without hormones, antibiotics or dioxins.

In its twenty years of existence the 'Cactus-Rëndfleesch vum Lëtzbuerger Bauer' label has steadily grown, with 86,606 cows, or around 35,387 tonnes of beef, delivered to the supermarket. In 2015, 163 certified farmers participated in the marketing of 2,000 tonnes of certified beef in Cactus stores, whilst 20% of the cattle sold in the Grand Duchy are marketed under the label.

Cactus took the opportunity of the beef label's 20th anniversary to announce the launch of a high quality beef named 'PREMIUM'. The label provides meet from the same breeders affiliated to the Cactus label, yet that has been selected from their best heifers which naturally offer fatter and more high quality meat well suited to the dry maturation process. It is available in the self-service beef stands in the five Cactus supermarkets of BE, Bascharage, Bereldange, ingeldorf and Kayl.

 

Photo by Cactus