British beef is set to be sold in China by the end of 2019. The UK Government estimates the market could be worth £230m for British businesses over the next five years.

The reopening of the market comes more than 20 years after the Chinese government imposed a ban on UK imports of beef in 1996.

The UK-China Beef Protocol was signed by Farming Minister Robert Goodwill and the Chinese Ambassador to the UK Liu Xiaoming as part of the 10th Economic and Financial Dialogue (EFD) between the UK and China, securing market access for UK beef exporters by the end of 2019.

The announcement follows a successful inspection last week by Chinese delegations visiting the UK.

“The Chinese market is a very exciting opportunity for Scottish exporters. At the recent HOFEX trade show in Hong Kong, QMS received a number of enquiries about exporting our quality Scotch beef and lamb to China,” said Tom Gibson, head of market development with QMS.

“The Chinese consumption of beef and sheepmeat is expected to rise significantly which will lead to an increased demand for imports and Scotch products, backed by provenance, traceability and QMS quality assurance schemes will be well placed to take advantage of this opportunity.”