Wednesday, January 11, 2012

USMEF: Mexico offers favorable market access for U.S. beef

Mexico was the first foreign market to reopen to U.S. beef following the discovery of BSE in 2003, and since that time Mexico has perennially been the largest volume market for U.S. beef exports. But some BSE-related restrictions on imports of U.S. beef, including a 30-month cattle age limit, still remain in place for Mexico. Speaking recently to a group of U.S. beef producers and exporters, U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) Regional Director Chad Russell said a full reopening of this market is a top priority for U.S. trade officials, and some progress is being made. For example, beef feet and sweetbreads were recently removed from the list of U.S. beef items prohibited by Mexico (prohibited items still include ground beef and mechanically separated meat). The cattle age limit, however, remains a difficult obstacle to overcome.

Despite these age and product restrictions, U.S. beef exports to Mexico performed very well in 2011. With two months of results still to be posted, beef exports to Mexico (including variety meat) reached nearly 470 million pounds valued at $818.2 million. This is a 6 percent increase in volume and an impressive 25 percent increase in value over the first 10 months 2010.

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