Argentina Granted EU Grain-Fed Beef Quota Access
According to the Argentinean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Argentina has recently joined the select group with access to the EU high quality beef (HQB) grainfed quota (a First-Come-First-Served administration method quota and an annual total of 48,200 tonnes swt).
8 August 2014
1 minute read
Originally created to solve a transatlantic dispute over hormone-use in cattle, the HQB grainfed quota was first opened to the US in 2009, write market analysts at Meat and Livestock Australia.
It was subsequently extended to Australia, Canada, Uruguay and New Zealand and boosted in mid-2012 from 20,000 tonnes swt to 48,200 tonnes swt.
EU imports under the grainfed quota totalled 40,883 tonnes swt in 2013-14, an increase of 27 per cent year-on-year (IMTA).
The major suppliers for the past fiscal year were the US (although with lower market share), Australia (up 68 per cent , to 14,663 tonnes swt) and Uruguay (up 48 per cent , to 9,743 tonnes swt).
Argentina already ships beef to the EU under the “Hilton Quota” but has consistently fallen short of its annual allotment of 30,000 tonnes swt.
Argentinean exporters blame government policies that aim to guarantee supplies of affordable beef to the domestic market. As such, Argentinean beef exports so far in 2014 are constrained, among other factors, by the government limiting export permits (ROE – registro de operaciones de exportaciones).
TheCattleSite News Desk
