This week’s opening of the US market to exports of Irish beef has attracted widespread attention from within and outside the agricultural sector. It is therefore not surprising that the US market was a big talking point at today’s Bord Bia meat prospects seminar.

Addressing the opening of the market, Brendan Gleeson, Assistant Secretary General of the Department of Agriculture and Food, said gaining market access was a huge boost for Ireland on a number of levels. He said that as well as providing access to the world’s largest and also one of the highest value markets, there is also a significant reputation enhancement from having USDA approval describing it as a ‘real feather in the cap’ for Irish exports.

While he said there are further steps to take before any exports occur, he described these as being relatively straightforward now that market access was secured. The first of these steps is to agree a health certificate with the Food Safety Inspection service (FSIS). Once this is complete, it is down to individual plants to gain approval and work through labelling requirements, a process he said can happen quite quickly once negotiations start. He added that the Department for Agriculture are also starting work on gaining access to the US market for Irish sheepmeat.

Premium market holds greatest potential

Barry Friends of Technomic Inc, USA, said the greatest potential for Irish exports exists in the high-value or premium markets. These markets are available in the two main food channels – the foodservice sector, which accounts for about 47/48c in every dollar spent on food, and the retail sector.

In the foodservice sector, he said that the food and beverage sector is worth $703bn per year, of which $478bn or 68% is generated from restaurant and bars. This restaurant market can be split further into segments – independently owned businesses and chains. While chains account for 43% of outlets, he said their greater organisation capacity returns them 62% of sales revenue but is unlikely to represent market opportunities for Irish beef in the longer term due to its lower value.

Barry said independent outlets represent a higher value market with a focus on ‘casual dining’ and ‘traditional fine dining’ seen as the best market opportunity for Irish beef. “The high value market is starved for product. You must get the story right (to gain access) and you have the story with Irish beef (grass-fed produced in a sustainable manner)."

In the foodservice sector, he explained that there is an increasing trend among a high percentage of consumers towards high-quality cuts, grass-fed and locally produced beef. Irish beef, he said, can easily fit this bill. The greatest potential in breaking into the foodservice sector is to secure a trade deal with one of the country’s main food distributors. Sysco, the company linked this week with ABP Food Group, is the largest distributor with 14.4% of sales. This could be increased significantly with rumours of a trade deal with US Foods, the company with the second largest market share of 9.6%.

In his closing comments, he said that the US holds significant opportunities for Irish beef but cautioned processors to “not screw it up” by allowing themselves to become commoditised.