The Support of Regional Economic Cooperation in Asia (SRECA) project is cooperating closely with Mongolian partners to improve exports of meat products. In doing so, SRECA aims to improve the quality standards of the meat sector, especially in rural areas, according to the export guidelines for meat products developed by the project with Mongolian partners. The intervention is supported by the German Senior Expert Service (SES) to work with the municipal administration of Dornod province of Mongolia. The SES expert is providing assistance on hygiene standards in slaughtering, cold chain management, packaging, etc. to improve meat product quality and exports.

SRECA, jointly with the Northeast Asian Environmental and Agricultural Research Center (NEAEARC) and the SES organised a series of online training and discussions with local butchers in Dornod province. SES delivered best practices of hygiene and safety of butcher measures in Germany from January to March 2022. NEAEARC facilitated four online training sessions and post-training discussions via local social media platforms.

Approximately 86 participants, including sherders or those from slaughterhouses, in total took part in the training sessions. The participants actively engaged in discussions on quality standards and how to implement these standards in their work.

With travel restrictions regarding Covid-19 being lessened, it is also envisaged that in the future, the SES experts can be brought together to Dornod for further on-site training. In the current situation, preparation meetings were still conducted online due to Covid-19 restrictions.

The outcomes of the SES intervention in Dornod, could also be summarised and utilised by herders and slaughterhouses in other provinces of Mongolia. All partners involved expressed their hope for the training outcomes to serve as foundations to boost the standard and quality development of the meat industry and value chain in Mongolia.