The Irish beef industry has been warned that its record exports to the UK will have to be reduced from the middle of next year, when Britain is set to lift its ban on cattle aged over 30 months entering the food chain.
According to estimates, the removal of the ban will release an additional 185,000 tonnes of locally produced beef on to the British market in a full year.
The Irish Food Board, Bord Bia, has warned that this could displace as much as 70,000 tonnes of the Irish beef currently going to Britain. It said new EU and international outlets would have to be found.
The OTM rule created a boom for Irish exporters, with a doubling of beef sales in the last five years. Last year’s 265,000 tonnes set a new record for Irish beef exports to Britain. Despite the impending cutbacks, Bord Bia said it was confident Irish beef would maintain a strong position in British multiples. It
said its confidence was fuelled by recent investments by Irish processors in central packing and added-value facilities aimed at serving leading retailers. Its own research, said Bord Bia, showed British consumers were “increasingly attracted to Irish beef”, with a current Irish beef promotion winning record sales.
None of the major UK supermarkets has yet committed
itself to stocking OTM beef (The Grocer, December 11, p104)
But NFU chief livestock advisor Kevin Pearce said: “From our discussions with retailers there has been no indication that they would seek not to purchase something which the Food Standards Agency has deemed perfectly acceptable, particularly as they import products from other countries with the same BSE risk status.”
Anthony Garvey
According to estimates, the removal of the ban will release an additional 185,000 tonnes of locally produced beef on to the British market in a full year.
The Irish Food Board, Bord Bia, has warned that this could displace as much as 70,000 tonnes of the Irish beef currently going to Britain. It said new EU and international outlets would have to be found.
The OTM rule created a boom for Irish exporters, with a doubling of beef sales in the last five years. Last year’s 265,000 tonnes set a new record for Irish beef exports to Britain. Despite the impending cutbacks, Bord Bia said it was confident Irish beef would maintain a strong position in British multiples. It
said its confidence was fuelled by recent investments by Irish processors in central packing and added-value facilities aimed at serving leading retailers. Its own research, said Bord Bia, showed British consumers were “increasingly attracted to Irish beef”, with a current Irish beef promotion winning record sales.
None of the major UK supermarkets has yet committed
itself to stocking OTM beef (The Grocer, December 11, p104)
But NFU chief livestock advisor Kevin Pearce said: “From our discussions with retailers there has been no indication that they would seek not to purchase something which the Food Standards Agency has deemed perfectly acceptable, particularly as they import products from other countries with the same BSE risk status.”
Anthony Garvey
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