Agricultural News
USMEF's Dan Halstrom on What Japan's Meat Trade Really Wants from the US Beef Cattle Industry
Thu, 19 Sep 2019 10:12:06 CDT
Dan Halstrom, president and CEO of the US Meat Export Federation has been in abroad recently as part of a trade mission to Japan. In an interview with Radio Oklahoma Ag Network Farm Director Ron Hays, he explained what exactly it is the Japanese meat trade wants from the US beef industry.
"They want us to continue being a very reliable supplier as we have been for decades on beef to Japan," Halstrom said. "I think our major importers, our major trade partners, the customers of those importers and the retailers and food service companies, etc.... I think there is a large amount of enthusiasm for the progress that's being made under the negotiations process and the fact that sooner rather than later we will be on a competitive level playing field."
Halstrom insists the relationship between the US beef industry and its loyal Japanese customers is very important to their mutual success. Halstrom reports that in 2003, prior to the infamous BSE scare, the US controlled approximately 70% of Japan's imported beef business. Ever since then, after the BSE scare, the US beef industry has been battling to regain that lost ground from its competitors. Today, US market share in that arena is about 50%. With a formal bilateral trade agreement in the works between the US and Japan, coupled with the level of enthusiasm of Japanese customers behind that deal, Halstrom is confident in the industry's future prospects to expand.
"There is room to grow compared to pre-BSE and our major customers in Japan can remember those days and I think they are well-positioned to increase their business with the US given all this recent progress," he said. "There is nothing more important than a reliable supply source - not only from a volume standpoint but from a value standpoint and I think this will only help us to further penetrate the markets and grow our business."
Listen to the full exchange between Halstrom and Hays about the US beef industry's prospects to grow its Japanese beef market, on today's Beef Buzz.
The Beef Buzz is a regular feature heard on radio stations around the region on the Radio Oklahoma Network and is a regular audio feature found on this website as well. Click on the LISTEN BAR below for today's show and check out our archives for older Beef Buzz shows covering the gamut of the beef cattle industry today.
WebReadyTM Powered by WireReady® NSI
Top Agricultural News
More Headlines...
