The Chinese market has the potential to take 20,000t to 25,000t of Irish beef every year as exporters adjust to Chinese protocol, according to Bord Bia’s Joe Burke. Speaking at the Macra na Feirme national conference, Burke, the beef and livestock sector manager with Bord Bia, said that while it would not replace the UK market, continued diversification was important.
At present there are six exporters approved to export beef to China and Burke said they were ramping up the volume sent as they adjusted to the Chinese protocol.
Beef that is exported to China is required to come from farms that are TB-free and never affected by a case of BSE. It also is required to be under 30 months and transported separately. He said it took time to put those systems in place.
Fresh v frozen
Ireland sends in the region of 250,000t or half of all beef produced in the country to the UK, mainly in the form of fresh product. Burke said that the distance from Ireland to China required beef to be frozen and that removed some of the value it could command. He said it was closer to home in Europe where opportunities existed to grow the preference among consumers for high-value Irish beef.
He said to do this it was important to raise awareness of initiatives such as Origin Green and the Bord Bia quality assurance scheme. He made the point this would not be directly with consumers but with businesses purchasing and selling the product. Origin Green, he said, encouraged long-term sustainable business and created loyalty.
Quality
He emphasised there was no wish to turn a back on the UK market as it was the primary market for fresh beef. He said that while the UK might be able to import food from cheaper South American countries post-Brexit, these countries would not be able to compete with Ireland on quality.
Sustainability was a key word for many of the speakers at the conference and it was referenced on several occasions that consumers wanted a sustainable product as well as a high-quality one. It was felt that Irish agriculture had a unique ability to provide those products due to the grass-based credentials.
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The Chinese market has the potential to take 20,000t to 25,000t of Irish beef every year as exporters adjust to Chinese protocol, according to Bord Bia’s Joe Burke. Speaking at the Macra na Feirme national conference, Burke, the beef and livestock sector manager with Bord Bia, said that while it would not replace the UK market, continued diversification was important.
At present there are six exporters approved to export beef to China and Burke said they were ramping up the volume sent as they adjusted to the Chinese protocol.
Beef that is exported to China is required to come from farms that are TB-free and never affected by a case of BSE. It also is required to be under 30 months and transported separately. He said it took time to put those systems in place.
Fresh v frozen
Ireland sends in the region of 250,000t or half of all beef produced in the country to the UK, mainly in the form of fresh product. Burke said that the distance from Ireland to China required beef to be frozen and that removed some of the value it could command. He said it was closer to home in Europe where opportunities existed to grow the preference among consumers for high-value Irish beef.
He said to do this it was important to raise awareness of initiatives such as Origin Green and the Bord Bia quality assurance scheme. He made the point this would not be directly with consumers but with businesses purchasing and selling the product. Origin Green, he said, encouraged long-term sustainable business and created loyalty.
Quality
He emphasised there was no wish to turn a back on the UK market as it was the primary market for fresh beef. He said that while the UK might be able to import food from cheaper South American countries post-Brexit, these countries would not be able to compete with Ireland on quality.
Sustainability was a key word for many of the speakers at the conference and it was referenced on several occasions that consumers wanted a sustainable product as well as a high-quality one. It was felt that Irish agriculture had a unique ability to provide those products due to the grass-based credentials.
Read more
Dutch veal gains access to China
Trump's trade deals
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