For many people, meat is an important source of proteins, vitamins and minerals in their diet. However, meat is a complex and variable raw material and the industry faces many challenges delivering high quality products of suitable shelf life to the consumer, whilst addressing legislative and environmental requirements.This seminar will address some of these challenges. In particular, it will bring delegates up to date on:– the topical issues of legislation, including the Food Information Regulation – animal feed and implications of plans to reduce the use of antibiotics in animals – EFSA´s role in pathogen reduction and meat inspection – the development of an integrated system to measure and predict meat eating quality at the abattoir stage – impacts of the meat and poultry sector on the environment – research update on vacuum cooling of cooked meat joints