Herriko Meat

Herriko meat is a type of beef which is guaranteed to originate from the Basque Country. Animals are born, raised, fattened and slaughtered there. Interestingly, Herriko means ‘from the country’ in Basque. Herriko beef and veal come from non-GMO fattened beef cattle (or dairy-beef cross-bred calves).

This local industry stems from the assessment that one quarter of the 42,000 beef cattle that are born in the Basque Country are fattened and slaughtered there. This assessment has allowed farmers and several professionals in the Basque Country beef cattle industry to agree on several objectives for the first time:

• To support local agricultural and cattle fattening by guaranteeing more lucrative prices for farmers.
• To galvanise the local economy by providing work for local businesses (abattoirs, butchering and processing workshops, transporters, etc.).
• To guarantee non-GMO feed throughout the fattening process.
• To offer high-quality beef, whose whole production life cycle takes place in the Basque Country, to artisan butcher’s, restaurants, institutional catering services, supermarkets and event organisers.
• To relocate beef consumption by allowing consumers to access beef with guaranteed local origin.

This approach guarantees that specifications are respected by regular internal and external controls (certified body).

Nowadays, almost 250 farmers and 4 slaughtermen work in the Herriko meat sector, allowing Herriko meat to be accessed by around a hundred distributors, mainly located in the Basque Country (butcher’s, restaurants, institutional catering services, supermarkets, etc.).