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US revives focus on Australia as beef export target

Jon Condon 22/10/2024

THE American Meat Institute has revived interest in gaining market access to Australia as a US beef export destination, in a move it described in correspondence to US trade administrators as being of ‘critical’ importance.

A new US beef marketing campaign, focusing on the message that “meals bring us together”.

In a letter to the US Trade Representative in Washington dated last Thursday, the American Meat Institute points to the vigorous growth in US pork trade into Australia over the past 20 years as a portent to future beef opportunities.

The US has sought beef export access to Australia off-and-on over the past 15 years, after Australia imposed a suspension in 2003 after BSE was discovered in the US herd. Beef Central first wrote about the prospects in 2011.

Some have interpreted the request to restore trade as ‘symbolic’ rather than commercially significant, signalling to other, larger customer countries that US beef has access to a nation with the some of the tightest biosecurity regulations and lowest disease presence in the world.

Even prior to the 2003 ban, trade in US beef into Australia was extremely limited, because for lengthy periods, the sums simply did not make imported US product attractive in the Australian market.

However, small opportunistic ‘windows’ would occasionally open due to currency movement and other reasons, when the sums made such trade worthwhile. This was often for single cuts like rumps, which could run into surplus in the US market in mid-winter, at the same time as barbecue season was in full-cry in Australia in mid-summer. Additionally, Australian beef processors often took their annual breaks in December/January, making small consignments of US beef an attractive supplement proposition into Australia.

The US product rarely attracted attention in the Australian market back then, and in fact was often not clearly identified at retail as US in origin. US chilled beef exports to Australia in the 1980s and 90s never exceeded 100 tonnes a year, import statistics show.

Growth in US pork trade

In the America Meat Institute’s lobby last week with the US Trade Representative, it said the US-Australia Free Trade Agreement implemented in 2005 was perhaps most consequential for the enhanced collaboration it has fostered between the two countries.

“Before the FTA entered into force, Australia’s duties on US pork and beef were already zero, except for some processed pork products, which were subject to a 5pc duty that was phased out,” it said.

Since then, US exports of pork to Australia have grown dramatically, from 3400t worth $10.6 million in 2004 to 70,000t worth more than $247m in 2023.

Seventy percent of Australia’s processed pork is derived from imported product, making it a lucrative destination for US hams and picnics (shoulder meat), the Meat Institute said.

Despite the FTA, Australia “continued to restrict access for chilled/frozen US beef”, due to what the MI described as “persistent, unjustified BSE disease-related bans.” It also claimed Australia largely limited imports of US pork to product destined for further processing.

“The Meat Institute urges that USTR give priority to removing restrictions on US beef exports that have been in place for two decades,” the institute’s letter said.

Risk assessment broadened

Recently, Australia’s Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry published a report which included a preliminary review of fresh beef and beef products imported from the United States, but which was sourced from cattle imported to the US from neighbours, Canada and Mexico.

The consideration of beef from cattle not directly bred in the US started around two years ago, and has added considerable delay to the risk assessment process, the report indicated.

The US formally requested that DAFF expand the scope of the risk assessment process to account for Canadian/Mexican bred cattle, which is what’s been happening for the past two years, leading to the recent public comment period.

Negotiations are now ongoing between DAFF and the US over the revised risk assessment. Some years ago, DAFF had approved an importation risk assessment from the US in principle, but that did not include the Canadian/Mexican calf origin component.

In the earlier process, Australia had asked for assurances that any beef exported was from US-born calves only, Beef Central was told. However the US insisted on including the Canadian/Mexican born calves, saying this was reflective of the US beef supply chain.

Industry submissions closed in July on this issue, and DAFF is now working through a number of issues raised by stakeholders. Several interest groups in Australia have insisted on equivalency in individual animal traceability in any US beef entering Australia, for example. Others emphasise a science-based approach to risk be used, or equivalency with Australian standards for meat production, food safety, residue risk and other matters.

Some current discussion has focussed on the US industry’s capacity to identify and track beef of Canadian or Mexican-bred origin through its system. Some US supply chains may be able to achieve it, while others may not, one contact said.

Current government-to-government discussion is around ‘risk settings’ attached to the proposed trade, which if they can be settled, would progress to a full DAFF Risk Competent Authority Assessment (effectively, DAFF’s counterparts in the US who would be certifying any export product entering Australia).

“There’s still a number of steps left, well before any trade could start,” a contact working in trade and regulatory circles told Beef Central this morning.

In a completely separate risk assessment, DAFF is also considering risks surrounding beef imported directly from Canada itself.

“DAFF has recommended allowing the importation of fresh beef and beef products from the US derived from immediate slaughter, feeder, and breeder cattle born and raised in Mexico and Canada – pending a final food safety risk assessment in the case of beef derived from Canadian cattle,” the Meat Institute’s letter to the USTR from last week said.

The Meat Institute said this “favorable determination” necessitated a “redoubling of efforts to finally secure access for US beef exports to Australia.”

Why Australia conducts import risk analyses

The Australian Department of Agriculture website provides a detailed explanation of the import risk assessment process.

It says import risk analyses are a key part of Australia’s biosecurity system, protecting Australia against the entry, establishment and spread of pests and diseases.

Australia is a member of the World Trade Organisation, the primary purpose of which is to ensure safe and open trade for the benefit of all member countries. Under its WTO obligations, Australia must consider import requests from trading partners.

“However, we are entitled to maintain a level of protection we consider appropriate to prevent pests and diseases establishing in our country. We refer to this as the appropriate level of protection (ALOP). We express Australia’s ALOP as providing a high level of protection for human, animal and plant health aimed at reducing risk to a very low level, but not to zero. A zero-risk approach would mean Australia would have no imports at all,” it says.

Following an import request, DAFF conducts an import risk analysis to determine if each good is safe to import.

“That is, we assess whether any biosecurity risks associated with the good can be managed to achieve Australia’s ALOP. If the risk cannot be managed effectively, we will not permit trade. If it can, we will mandate import conditions that importers must meet to import the good.”

“We may also conduct import risk analyses in response to new information, such as following technological advancements or when there is a change in risk to the importation of the product.

How Australia conducts import risk analyses

Australia uses a formal method to conduct import risk analyses, consistent with international guidelines, DAFF says. It includes a range of assessment tools, including a risk estimation matrix.

“We assess the pests and diseases that an imported good can carry. Some of the factors we assess as part of the analysis include (but are not limited to):

  • status of pests or diseases in the country of export and Australia
  • likelihood pests or diseases will enter Australia on or in the imported product
  • likelihood pests or diseases will establish and spread in Australia
  • adverse consequences if pests or diseases were to establish in Australia.

Due to international trade rules, DAFF’s risk assessment cannot consider competition impacts, its website says.

 

 

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Comments

  1. John Gunthorpe, 23/10/2024

    These are long term plans by AMI. For a few years there will be insufficient beef product in the USA to meet their domestic demand. In fact, commercially, it is more likely Aussie feeder steers and heifers could be exported live to USA to counter their undersupply.

    I well remember the time when processors here were struggling to meet minimum residue levels imposed by the USDA on organochlorines levels in our kidney fat. Fortunately, we had tail tags on our cattle so could trace the contamination to the property source.

    There was no risk to human health from consuming the contaminated beef, but this was not their purpose. We were competing in North Asia with US product, and they wanted to denigrate our reputation.

    Thanks to help from MLA and DFAT we were able to overcome their concerns and defeat their tactics. Make sure regulations for importing beef into Australia from the US includes testing kidney fat for organochlorines. They have no traceback and will suffer in international trade of beef if MRLs are found.

    Excel and JBS are two of the largest beef processors in the US. It will be interesting to see if they support the export of American beef into Australia. If they import Prime, Choice or Select, at least Australian consumers will be confident of the eating quality of the beef. It is disappointing there is little evidence of MSA certification in Australian meat departments – none in Coles and little in Woolworths.
    Australian Cattle Industry Council

  2. Matthew Della Gola, 23/10/2024

    Why do articles like this use Language like the US or Australia as if to say the country is asking for this. Can we call it as it is and say the lobbyists for JBS or Tyson want to affect international policy so there products can move around the world without any interference. Which would in turn give them more control over what they pay the producer. Cheers Matthew Della Gola

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