Irish race further ahead of Brits in US beef exports

Ireland has pushed further ahead with beef exports to the lucrative US market, as the country plans for a post-EU future.

Irish farmers will now be able to ship manufacturing beef, which is minced for products such as burgers, on top of steak cuts such as fillet, rib-eye and sirloins.

Last year Ireland sold €14m (£12m) of beef to the US from six approved factories after becoming the first EU country to gain market access following a 15-year break due to BSE fears.

See also: £15m cut from prime cattle value, AHDB study finds

Since the EU-wide ban was lifted in January 2015, the Netherlands and Lithuania have also earned access. Negotiations between the UK and US authorities are ongoing.

Irish farm leaders have hailed the news, in a week where Britain’s vote to quit the EU has shaken the industry’s confidence. Half of Irish beef production is currently destined for the UK and the trading relationship between the two countries after Brexit is unclear.

Approval needed

Joe Healy, Irish Farmers’ Association president, said work was now needed to get more plants approved for export.     

“It is very important that real delivery is made on accessing new markets for Irish beef, particularly in light of the recent Brexit outcome,” he said.

The US beef market has enormous potential for exporters. Each year the country of 319 million people buys in 1m tonnes of beef, of which most is for manufacturing.

Only about one-tenth of the market is currently for grass-fed, natural or organic, but sales of those kinds of beef are growing about 20% a year.

Ireland’s farm minister Michael Creed said the announcement was the culmination of a year of discussions and checks.

His country had “first-mover advantage”, Mr Creed said, and would be supporting the fresh access with a marketing campaign.

“This US market is a potentially huge prize given the size of the market and the demand we know exists there for premium grass-fed beef.

“As an exporting country, accessing new markets is key to the long-term sustainability of our beef sector and this extension of our access in the US has the capability to be a significant boost to the sector over a period of time.”

British exports

British beef will not be joining Irish on the Atlantic crossing just yet. Unlike Ireland, only about one-fifth of British production is exported, but the US could be a premium, added-value market. 

In April, the UK government handed a 1,000-page dossier to the US Department of Agriculture that explained the hygiene and quality standards of British beef and lamb. US agriculture secretary Tom Vilsack said he would study the document before agreeing a series of factory inspections.

AHDB head of global supply chain development Phil Hadley said the process was “inching forward”.

He said hopefully a visit by US authorities would be arranged for the end of this year, or early 2017.

“Our ambition remains to make it happen as quickly as possible,” Dr Hadley said.