The Irish Beef and Lamb Association (IBLA) has welcomed an agreement allowing for the export of Irish sheepmeat to the US.
The deal was announced yesterday (Sunday, April 24) by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Charlie McConalogue who is leading an agri-food trade mission to the US and Mexico this week.
The agreement with the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) involves a ‘veterinary health certificate’ for the export of Irish sheepmeat to the country.
This allows Irish sheepmeat plants to formally apply for approval to export to the US.
Bord Bia research shows that lamb consumption is growing among US consumers, particularly in the younger age categories.
IBLA reaction
IBLA said that the announcement, coming at the very start of the trade mission, “signals some optimism for our sheep sector for the years to come”.
The group called on the meat processing industry to come forward with supply contracts for primary producers to ensure that there is a supply of lamb to meet this new demand.
IBLA said that the contacts should have inflation and deflation pricing structures for the months ahead.
“In the absence of contracts, sheep farmers should consider if they are willing to carry all the financial risk before making the decision to produce lamb.
“Contracts can be a win-win and can guarantee supply,” the group said.
“If processors want to maximise this new market opportunity, they are going to have secure supply and can no longer simply assume that farmers are going to produce as they always did – times are very different now.
“Unless confidence is present in a meaningful way in the sheep sector, there will be no supply of lamb from Irish sheep farmers, who can produce world class lamb but require a world class price,” IBLA concluded.