This info could change our marketing strategy and our recordkeeping. There's also a thread on the feedyard board with more informaiton.
Industry reacts with cautious optimism to Japan beef deal
by Pete Hisey on 7/28/2006 for Meatingplace.com
It may take years to regain the market share the U.S. enjoyed in Japan in 2003, when $1.4 billion in U.S. beef was shipped to Japan, but the American beef industry is still grateful to get the market open again, if on a limited basis.
J. Patrick Boyle, chief executive of the American Meat Institute, called the agreement announced Thursday "a good first step, but it's a very restrictive reopening. It is restricted to cattle under 20 months of age, and there's absolutely no scientific basis for that restriction."
Boyle pointed out that although the majority of cattle slaughtered in the United States are between 18 and 22 months of age, "the vast majority have no birth records to provide proof of their age, so we will be extremely limited in the amount of beef we can export, at least for now."
Since birth records and a rating of A-40 in the tenderness scale as determined by visual observation of the carcass by trained graders of meat are the only two methods acceptable to Japan for ascertaining age accurately, only 30 percent to 35 percent of U.S. cattle are even eligible for export, Boyle says. About 10 percent to 15 percent of cattle receive a grade of A-40 or better.
A marketing challenge
Further consultations are scheduled for this fall, during which the United States will press to allow beef from cattle up to 30 months in age into the export program, but Boyle said that it will be a long process to expand the program.
Philip M. Seng, chief executive of the U.S. Meat Export Federation, said that "our beef is now one of the most scrutinized foods ever to be imported into Japan. We look forward to winning back the confidence of the many Japanese companies and individuals who have both relied on and enjoyed our products for nearly three decades."
Regaining market share may be difficult, and USMEF has a full promotional program in place, including demonstrations, seminars, in-store promotions and a full publicity campaign based on a bright red "We Care" logo and a "We Care Promise" program for retailers and foodservice operators.
"This is going to be a marketing opportunity, and I am sure our meat industry can meet the challenge," said AMI's Boyle.
No veal for now
None of the 35 plants that applied for export clearance plan to export veal, and there will be a six-month moratorium on approval of new exporters, so there won't be a repeat of the veal shipment that cut off the Japanese market less than a month after it had reopened last December.
Japan has not promised in writing that its market will not snap shut at the first technical violation of the trade agreement, but according to AMI's Boyle, "U.S. negotiators have assured us that the Japanese authorities have promised that there will be a proportionate response to any violation. I would hope that means that the affected product would be discarded, and that repeated violations from a single plant would mean that action would be taken against that plant," not the entire export industry.
Exporters will have a chance to hit the ground running, as the estimated one million metric tons of beef that was stranded at customs in Japan when the market closed in January will not be allowed into the country for three months after the border reopens, according to USMEF spokesman Lynn Heinze. That meat, which has been frozen for several months, will be reinspected by Japanese authorities before it is cleared for import, but should still be of high enough quality for sale.
Industry reacts with cautious optimism to Japan beef deal
by Pete Hisey on 7/28/2006 for Meatingplace.com
It may take years to regain the market share the U.S. enjoyed in Japan in 2003, when $1.4 billion in U.S. beef was shipped to Japan, but the American beef industry is still grateful to get the market open again, if on a limited basis.
J. Patrick Boyle, chief executive of the American Meat Institute, called the agreement announced Thursday "a good first step, but it's a very restrictive reopening. It is restricted to cattle under 20 months of age, and there's absolutely no scientific basis for that restriction."
Boyle pointed out that although the majority of cattle slaughtered in the United States are between 18 and 22 months of age, "the vast majority have no birth records to provide proof of their age, so we will be extremely limited in the amount of beef we can export, at least for now."
Since birth records and a rating of A-40 in the tenderness scale as determined by visual observation of the carcass by trained graders of meat are the only two methods acceptable to Japan for ascertaining age accurately, only 30 percent to 35 percent of U.S. cattle are even eligible for export, Boyle says. About 10 percent to 15 percent of cattle receive a grade of A-40 or better.
A marketing challenge
Further consultations are scheduled for this fall, during which the United States will press to allow beef from cattle up to 30 months in age into the export program, but Boyle said that it will be a long process to expand the program.
Philip M. Seng, chief executive of the U.S. Meat Export Federation, said that "our beef is now one of the most scrutinized foods ever to be imported into Japan. We look forward to winning back the confidence of the many Japanese companies and individuals who have both relied on and enjoyed our products for nearly three decades."
Regaining market share may be difficult, and USMEF has a full promotional program in place, including demonstrations, seminars, in-store promotions and a full publicity campaign based on a bright red "We Care" logo and a "We Care Promise" program for retailers and foodservice operators.
"This is going to be a marketing opportunity, and I am sure our meat industry can meet the challenge," said AMI's Boyle.
No veal for now
None of the 35 plants that applied for export clearance plan to export veal, and there will be a six-month moratorium on approval of new exporters, so there won't be a repeat of the veal shipment that cut off the Japanese market less than a month after it had reopened last December.
Japan has not promised in writing that its market will not snap shut at the first technical violation of the trade agreement, but according to AMI's Boyle, "U.S. negotiators have assured us that the Japanese authorities have promised that there will be a proportionate response to any violation. I would hope that means that the affected product would be discarded, and that repeated violations from a single plant would mean that action would be taken against that plant," not the entire export industry.
Exporters will have a chance to hit the ground running, as the estimated one million metric tons of beef that was stranded at customs in Japan when the market closed in January will not be allowed into the country for three months after the border reopens, according to USMEF spokesman Lynn Heinze. That meat, which has been frozen for several months, will be reinspected by Japanese authorities before it is cleared for import, but should still be of high enough quality for sale.
