U.S. Meat Export Federation hosts spring conference
Livestock and grain producers, red meat processors and exporters and other key stakeholders gathered in Oklahoma City May 20-22 for the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) Spring Conference.
Oklahoma Secretary of Agriculture Blayne Arthur welcomed the group, detailing the importance of international trade to Oklahoma’s agricultural economy.
Arthur, who is also a cattle producer, shared highlights from a recent visit to Japan where she met with USMEF staff and saw firsthand how U.S. red meat is merchandised and served in the Japanese market.
USMEF Chair Jay Theiler, executive vice president of corporate affairs for Idaho-based Agri Beef Co., also shared recent experiences from international markets.
In April, Theiler led a USMEF delegation to Mexico City, Mexico for a market tour and a two-day USMEF symposium which attracted importers and other prospective customers from throughout Mexico.
In late April, Theiler traveled to London to participate in events celebrating the return of duty-free access for U.S. beef in the United Kingdom.
Red meat exports outlined
USMEF President and Chief Executive Officer Dan Halstrom gave attendees an overview of the latest export results for U.S. pork, beef and lamb.
He also offered insights on key developments affecting market access for U.S. red meat, including the recent announcement China had finally renewed registrations for U.S. beef establishments.
This impasse had kept most U.S. beef ineligible for export to China for about the past year, but some shipments have now resumed. However, Halstrom cautioned, China must remove significant technical barriers before the market can be considered fully reopened.
“While this wasn’t solved last week, it’s going to be focused on in the very near future,” Halstrom said. “And I can tell you this – we have customers in China who are ready to go now.”
Halstrom also applauded a recent breakthrough with Saudi Arabia, in which Saudi officials agreed to remove barriers which had effectively locked most U.S. beef out of the market for the past 12 years.
“This is a big, big deal which could lead to exports as high as a couple hundred million dollars per year once the business gets going,” he said. “For both China and Saudi Arabia, I want to thank the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative and the U.S. Department of Agriculture for their tireless efforts to reopen these markets. These are tremendous wins for our industry.”
The presentation concluded with an economic and political overview of Central America – one of the fastest growing regions in the world for U.S. red meat exports. Last year, Central America took nearly $600 million in U.S. pork exports and more than $200 million in U.S. beef, with significant potential for further growth.
CAFTA outlook provided
Ricardo Zúñiga, founding partner of consulting firm Dinámica Americas, offered an optimistic outlook for Central America going forward, thanks in large part to the stability provided by the Central America-Dominican Republic-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA).
“Let me give you the headline right up front – CAFTA survived a very tough year,” Zúñiga said. “CAFTA was not in the news, and this is some of the best news there could be because it’s not the case for many free trade agreements the U.S. has been either renegotiating or setting aside. In the case of CAFTA, it’s been largely respected.”
But Zúñiga cautioned, political transitions can have a rapid impact on market conditions in Central America, so U.S. companies should monitor these situations carefully.
He added U.S. migration enforcement can dramatically impact remittances to Central America, which represent a significant portion of consumers’ disposable income in the region.
“I don’t know if people realize how much remittances from the U.S. are a part of the growth story for U.S. meat exports to Central America,” Zúñiga explained. “But they are a huge part of why U.S. beef and pork products are becoming more and more a part of the diet in the region.”
Innovative marketing strategies discussed
During the last day of the conference, a panel discussion detailed innovative marketing strategies and activities which have helped expand demand for U.S. red meat in Asian and Latin American markets.
Panelists included Jihae Yang, USMEF vice president for the Asian Pacific, who shared insights from Taiwan, South Korea and Japan.
One of the latest innovations in Japan is the marketing of U.S. beef short plate as a barbecue cut available to retail consumers. While short plate has long been a staple of Japan’s foodservice sector, new variations of the cut are gaining traction at supermarkets and other retail outlets.
In Taiwan, Yang ex-plained how USMEF is working with 7-Eleven convenience stores to expand the availability of chilled U.S. beef cuts. She noted this is a marketing breakthrough not previously achieved in Taiwan, or even in Japan and Korea, which have long been considered the leading-edge markets for the convenience store sector.
In South Korea, Yang explained USMEF has partnered with retail giant E-Mart to heighten awareness of Prime grade, chilled U.S. beef cuts, including the chuck eye roll, top blade and chuck flap tail.
Lucia Ruano, USMEF representative in Central America and the Dominican Republic, offered highlights from campaigns to inform health-conscience consumers about the nutritional and fitness benefits of U.S. red meat.
She also spotlighted online training tools to help educate prospective customers and other key decision-makers about the attributes of specific U.S. pork and beef cuts.
Ruano noted USMEF has also expanded its engagement with restaurateurs and foodservice purchasing managers in the region, showcasing the attributes of underutilized U.S. pork and beef cuts which can enhance the range and quality of restaurant menus.
USMEF Latin America Representative Homero Recio addressed USMEF members on developments in other Western Hemisphere markets, including Colombia and Mexico.
Recio explained the presence of U.S. pork continues to expand in Colombia’s retail sector but noted the introduction of underutilized beef cuts in a wider range of retail venues has also opened new doors for U.S. beef.
USMEF also has promotional activities planned in conjunction with the upcoming FIFA World Cup soccer tournament – which is wildly popular in Colombia – allowing retail customers to qualify for entry into VIP viewing venues.
Recio further highlighted Cantina Vibes, a campaign in which USMEF has expanded the penetration of U.S. pork and beef variety meats in Mexico’s casual dining sector and explained how U.S. pork jowls are being merchandised as a flavorful, convenient, high-protein snack by street vendors and at stadium concession stands.
Factors impacting demand addressed
Additionally, USMEF members gained insights from a distinguished panel of livestock industry experts including Dr. Derrell Peel of Oklahoma State University, Dr. Nevil Speer of Turkey Track Consulting and Don Close, senior animal protein analyst with Terrain.
The panel addressed factors impacting protein demand in both the international and domestic markets, noting the important role exports play in bolstering the profitability of livestock producers and incentivizing industry expansion, but expansion of the beef cattle herd has been elusive due to factors such as volatile grazing conditions, hay availability and persistently higher operating costs.
“You cannot stabilize the cow inventory by not killing cows,” Close explained. “If we’re not keeping replacement heifers on top of that, we’re going to continue to decline. By not killing cows and not replacing with females, the average age of our cow herd is getting substantially older. When we finally do start to expand, we’re going to have to retain enough females, not only to rebuild what we’ve lost but we’re going to have to retain additional replacement females because of the accelerated attrition of the cows that are still out there.”
The tight cattle supply has fueled misperceptions about the impact of trade, with some media outlets suggesting exports reduce availability for U.S. consumers.
Peel illustrated the benefits of trade by drawing a comparison to households that periodically fill their home freezer with a full range of beef cuts.
“I always remind producers – because they almost all have freezer beef – what it’s like when you get down to the stuff in the bottom of the freezer,” he said. “By exporting cuts we don’t like to eat as much, trade allows us to clean out the bottom of the freezer so we can focus U.S. demand on the cuts we really want.”
Speer highlighted the benefits producers have realized from raising higher grading cattle to meet consumers’ demand for high-quality beef. He contrasted the current situation with the 1980-90s, when the beef industry was losing the battle for consumer dollars spent on protein.
“Now we’re in a whole new realm,” Speer said. “This is what’s bringing consumers back – quality and the consistency. And it didn’t just happen. We’ve gotten better at genetics, we’ve gotten better at management and we’re starting to listen to consumers, and it makes all the difference in the world.”
USMEF collects and analyzes market intelligence, implements promotional programs and collaborates with industry stakeholders and governmental agenies to increase U.S. red meat exports. For more information, visit usmef.org.
