Irish beef industry looks to China and the US

“I would hope that we will make significant progress in opening up the Chinese market this year, but that is a decision for the Chinese minister and the Chinese government to make. We certainly will provide the assurance and the science behind the assurance to facilitate that decision,”​ he said.

Likewise, work is ongoing to gain access to the US market, which, like China, has been closed to Ireland since the BSE crisis. Minister Coveney stated that the US had changed the rules on BSE rule, which will help facilitate the opening of the market to Irish beef.

In the last year or so, several other countries have re-opened to Irish beef post-BSE. The Japanese and Saudi Arabian markets were among the most recent. High-level trade delegations were led by the Irish Taoiseach (Prime Minister) and the Minister for Agriculture to these and several other countries.

Exports up​

Coveney made his comments at the launch of the Bord Bía (Irish food board) Export Performance & Prospects Irish Food, Drink and Horticulture – 2013-2014 report. This showed that exports of meat and livestock grew by 8% or €245m to reach €3.3bn in 2013. Beef was the star performer with the value of exports up by 10% to just under €2.1bn.

“Five per cent of that came in increased volume and 4% through increased prices. The UK market has been particularly strong over the past 12 months and that has tended to drive value,”​ Aidan Cotter, chief executive, Bord Bía, told Globalmeatnews.com.​ Fifty-three per cent of Irish beef exports go to the UK and, in 2013, shipments increased by 5% to 250,000 tonnes (t) and, in value terms, trade was worth an estimated €1.1bn.
 

“The growing demand for beef from Quality Assured farms is reflected in the fact that it accounts for 87% of our beef under the Bord Bía scheme, compared with 78% previously, and that has been supported by industry doubling the bonus for Quality Assured animals,”​ said Cotter.

He added that the fresh beef sector had come through the horsemeat crisis ‘unscathed’. There were some challenges still in the frozen beef and ready meals sector, he said, but he expected an eventual recovery.

Higher output​

In the total meat and livestock sector, a combination of higher output in some categories – mainly beef and sheep meat – and stronger prices for cattle and pigs helped boost the value of trade. Despite a drop of around 2% in pig meat production, a rise of almost 6% in pig prices increased the value of Irish pig meat exports by 3% to reach €52m.

The competitive market for poultry continued in 2013, although higher export volumes and an improvement in prices led to the value of poultry exports rising by 4% to an estimated €230m.

A rise of 7% in sheep output offset lower carcase weights and a small drop in prices led to an increase in the value of Irish sheep meat exports by 4% or €220m.

A jump of one-third in live cattle exports and a doubling in sheep shipments amounted to a rise of 11% in the value of livestock exports to an estimated €240m.

Importance of Europe​

Irish export destinations have been transformed in the last decade since the BSE crisis, when many international markets (outside the EU) were closed to Irish beef. The UK market has remained Ireland’s largest market, but the EU has increased in importance in the last decade. Another notable change has been the move from commodity markets towards retail, with value-added products.

Exports of beef to Continental Europe rose slightly to 214,000t or a value of around €960m – an increase of €60m during 2013. Exports to Asia and, to a lesser extent, Russia contributed toward beef exports of 8,000t or more than €25m. Pig meat has been exported to Russia, China and the US, and the Australian market opened during 2013. These exports to markets outside the EU grew by 7% to 65,000t of pig meat, worth an estimated €125m in 2013.

Bord Bía stated in the report that the prospects for the meat and livestock sector in 2014 remain positive, with tight supplies continuing across the EU for most species. While slower consumer demand is likely to continue in some EU markets, the overall trading environment is expected to positive, helped by strong global prices.