Beef and Lamb New Zealand believed it was ''very close'' to landing a collaborative marketing entity, by partnering with meat processing and exporting companies.
The organisation had been working intensively with processors and exporters over the past two years to agree a 50:50 funded way of promoting sheepmeat and beef, and telling the ''country of origin'' story, chairman James Parsons said.
It was now at a point where there was more agreement than not to collaborate and create a new jointly funded, jointly governed marketing entity, he said.
An initial budget of about $7 million to $9 million a year was proposed, which would be funded in an equal split half by Beef and Lamb, on behalf of farmers, and half by processors.
The proposal was being circulated among processors and, with their support, a more detailed business plan would be developed in the coming weeks, Mr Parsons said.
That approach was recommended in the red meat sector strategy, which was released in 2011 and aimed at improving the sector's viability and increasing its earnings from $8 billion to $14 billion by 2025.
New Zealand was considered relatively small in the global meat market but it had ''a story like no other'', he said.
The marketing activities envisaged were around creating awareness of, and preference for, New Zealand sheepmeat and beef on the basis of three ''pillars'': grass fed, quality (both on and off farm), and health and wellbeing.
Feedback from processors was they wanted the ability to develop their own brands as well, he said.
From here, the process involved processors confirming their participation in the model. That would inform what Beef and Lamb included in its own levy offer to be put to farmers later this year in its farmer referendum.
Federated Farmers meat and fibre spokesman Rick Powdrell commended the initiative, saying he would ''hate to see meat industry politics derail or water down'' the proposal.
Over the past few years, it had been disappointing for farmers, who were heavily investing in more efficient production on farm, to then see the value of their product being let down overseas, Mr Powdrell said.
New Zealand sheepmeat needed to be marketed as a distinctive product and the fact that New Zealand's beef animals were grass fed and not grain fed was a ''market plus'', which had not received enough attention, Mr Powdrell said.
Rabobank's latest agribusiness monthly showed New Zealand exports of beef for March 2015 were up 19% year on year to 56,185 tonnes swt.
Strong demand continued from the United States, which was up 19% and China, up 49%. Exports to Canada and the Philippines were also up, 41% and 42% respectively.
