DEFRA Industry partnership aims to boost meat exports

A new partnership between DEFRA and the UK livestock industry has been launched in a bid to help increase UK exports.

Initially a three-year trial, the UK Export Certification Partnership (UKECP) will liaise with the UK livestock industry to establish export market priorities and also help draft and follow through export health certificates, which are normally required before exports can commence.

Peter Hardwick, AHDB meat services international manager, said the partnership strengthened the existing links and would lead to greater flexibility in the allocation of resources in what can be a time consuming process. “International markets are essential to the profitability of the UK meat and livestock sector and we are confident that this new initiative will open up even more avenues to develop further our international trade.”