Meat news Archives

China, Japan, Taiwan, and Kuwait have all announced bans on pig meat imported from Italy after several cases of African Swine Fever (ASF) were reported in wild boar in the Piemonte region in Northern Italy.

The countries have reportedly blocked purchases of pork from Italy, whilst Switzerland has also introduced trade restrictions with Italy.

The news was announced on Wednesday by Confagricoltura, the confederation of Italian agriculture. Confagricoltura president Massimiliano Giansanti called for the “quick and effective” implementation of “surveillance and biosecurity measures for the protection of farms” as part of efforts to “limit the damage as much as possible.”

Italy has also announced a ban on hunting and several other outdoor activities in two northern regions affected by the outbreak.

by Iain Hoey / Pig World

Brexit talks have been passed back to negotiators, with little sign of progress from the UK and EU leadership, and with no deal getting worryingly close for exporters.
Sheep meat is one sector facing particularly high tariffs – put there to protect British and other European farmers, but now the UK will be outside the EU fortress.
Even with a tariff-free deal, there will be high extra costs for animal produce going to Europe, involving certification, queues and border checks.

Remember spring? If you were lucky enough to get out to somewhere rural, you probably saw some cute lambs a-gambolling.

Well, it’s not looking good for them now. They’ve put on some weight, and are less cute. Or they were. This has been the slaughtering season.

About a third of Scottish lamb goes for export, and 98% of that is to the European Union. French chefs highly value uplands-grazed lamb.

There’s a metaphor somewhere in there for the Brexit talks.

But for sheep farmers, this isn’t metaphor. This is their future. The average tariff on sheep meat is 48%. It is not a flat rate: instead, there’s a fee per kilo and a percentage of the value.

And the more it is butchered and processed, the higher the tariff on entering the European Union.

by Douglas Fraser

Several countries ban pig meat imported from Italy following ASF cases

Brexit: Lambs to the slaughter