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Chinese market is a huge opportunity for US beef

The president and CEO of the US Meat Export Federation says US beef exports could see a huge boost if trade normalizes with China.

But, Dan Halstrom says all the right things have to happen first.  “If the duties are reduced back to the normal, call it the normalized rate of 12 percent, from where they are today which is at 37 percent,” he says.  “And if all the non-tariff trade issues were eliminated so we’re at an even playing field with our competition, like Australia.”

He tells Brownfield they have yet to see any details about the Phase One trade agreement with – but the market opportunity is significant.  “Our estimates indicate that our exports could increase quite a bit – up to 200,000 metric tons,” he says.  “For comparison’s sake, we’re looking at the neighborhood of 7,000 or 8,000 metric tons for this year.”

Halstrom says last year the US sold about $70 million worth of beef to China, but if a trade agreement is signed and it addresses the tariff and non-tariff issues, the market potential could jump to more than $1.5 billion.

AUDIO: Dan Halstrom, US Meat Export Federation

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