January 20th 2001

By Paul Mooney

IT is realistic to expect the Egyptian veterinary authorities to eventually exclude Ireland from its blanket ban on EU beef and to allow exports of beef from here resume, Bord Bia chief executive Michael Duffy said this week.

Speaking at the Bord's annual review and outlook he said the reality was that nothing had changed here with regard to strict controls and the safety and quality of our beef and this message could be put strongly to the authorities in Egypt.

"The controls in place here since 1996 have been examined exhaustively,'' he said. He warned however that negative media coverage of BSE in the EU continued to appear in Egypt.

The controls put in place here by the Department were satisfactory and could be highlighted to export markets, he said.

The new circumstances on the continent meant that Bord Bia could have to significantly alter its marketing strategy in France and Italy and plans to do so are already underway, he said.

Exports of Irish beef to France increased last year but almost exclusively to the food service sector. He warned that re-nationalisation of the French beef market was set to intensify, despite the rising number of BSE cases in French herds.

The first native BSE case in Italy, confirmed in the past week, would probably hit consumption there further, he said. However, there was a view in the trade that it was better to have this "out of the way'', he said. Consumption had already fallen by 40 per cent before this case, he said.

Much of the Irish beef going to Italy was going to stable retail markets. "A lot of retailers are long term buyers and they know the issues well.''

EU cattle supplies will be boosted in 2001 by the carryover of around half a million cattle from 2000, the Boards review states. A key issue for Ireland is the extent to which beef from animals over 30 months will be removed from the market.

Usage of the cull scheme across the EU will depend on consumer acceptability of BSE testing, compensations levels in relation to market prices and the capacity to resolve the logistics of both testing and the cull scheme.

A recovery in consumer confidence if combined with a big uptake of the cull scheme could significantly improve market balance and give better prices for our producers.

However such a scenario is unlikely to evolve until well into 2001 and in the meantime markets will remain uncertain with the volumes well below normal levels.

The earliest possible reopening of international markets is critical if Ireland's position as a major exporter of beef is to be maintained.

With beef consumption set to remain below normal in 2001 Bord Bia expects demands for other meats to continue firm. Sheep exports are expected to be boosted by steady demand in France where beef consumption remains below normal.

The trade for light lambs suitable for the Mediterranean market looks like being broadly similar to last years levels as Spanish production continues to rise.

The UK is expected to remain the main outlet for Irish pig meat especially given the continuing strength of sterling. The outlook for EU pigmeat production is for a further 1% reduction in 2001 with most of this in the first half of the year.

Home | About | Search | Help | Contact Us