New trade agreements agreed between the UK and the US could see increased quantities of British beef heading across the Atlantic.
Agricultural and Horticultural Development Board (AHDB) analysts have identified the key opportunities and threats associated with the new UK-US Comprehensive Prosperity Deal.
According to the AHDB, on the upside, the UK will be able to export up to 13,000t of beef to the US, tariff-free, following changes to an existing tariff rate quota (TRQ).
The US has a TRQ for beef imports, within which there are country-specific quotas for Australia, New Zealand, Argentina, and Uruguay.
British beef
The UK, along with Brazil, has access to the US TRQ under the ‘Other Countries’ allocation, which is 65,005t.
In practical terms, however, it has been challenging for the UK to make use of this TRQ for British beef for as Brazil often uses the entire allocation.
In 2024, Brazil had made use of the ‘Other Countries’ allocation by March 28 (it opened on January 1, 2024). This year, the ‘Other Countries’ allocation was spent in just 17 days after opening at the start of the calendar year, the AHDB said.
The proximity of Brazil to the US has also put the UK at a disadvantage in this respect, according to the board.
UK beef exporters would be wary of risking sending shipments of beef across the Atlantic only to find upon arrival that the quota allocation has been used up and they would face full tariff rates for British beef to cross the US border.
The new UK-US trade deal removes this risk, as the UK would have its own TRQ allocation.
But this will not all be one-way traffic.
Currently, the US has a 1,000t quota for exporting beef to the UK, which is subject to a 20% tariff.
Under the prosperity deal, the 20% tariff will be removed and the US will have a preferential beef TRQ of 13,000t.
However, US beef imports will have to meet UK food standards, so the Westminster government’s red line on this aspect remains intact.
While the quantity of beef imports from the US matches that of beef exports from the UK, there are concerns over the value of imported US beef.
Imports of high value, premium cuts – such as strip loins – could potentially have a considerable impact on the UK domestic market.
The British Meat Processors Association (BMPA) estimates that the UK produces around 3,900t of strip loins which is just under a third of the beef TRQ for the US.
Northern Ireland is the best-placed region in the UK to avail of new British beef export opportunities to the US.
This is due to Northern Ireland’s focus on grass-based beef production systems, which differentiate from US systems.
Adding to this is the fact that the deal comes as cattle prices have already reached record highs.
