Radio Oklahoma Ag Network Farm Director Ron Hays had the chance to speak with Phil Seng, president and CEO of the US Meat Export Federation earlier in the summer, and according to him, beef exports in 2017 have been incredibly strong. He believes there is a bright future ahead for US beef trade, now that China has opened its markets to our beef products.
Seng says China has the potential to become one of America’s most important markets - just not right away. “It takes time and it’s going to take, I think, some deliberate actions,” Seng said. “We know from experience that a lot of times when we start up in these markets, there’s growing pains.” He refers, of course, to the industry’s need to simply adapt to all the new regulations and restrictions presented by China’s government that allows our beef to actually pass through their customs - and all the documentation, relationship building and everything else that comes with it. He insists, the agreement is not perfect by any means and that there will likely be bumps in the road that will have to be figured out on the fly, but he says that comes with the territory. But with China’s incredible pace as a trade nation, having gone from practically zero in beef imports to upwards of $2 billion in receipts, Seng is optimistic about the opportunities.
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