China has reopened access to “major UK pork producers” following Covid-related restrictions on some exports of the protein to the Asian country.
The deal struck by the British government and industry representatives with China covers “unprocessed pork products”, an agreement that is expected to add £80 million ($101.8 million) to last year’s export value, the U.K. said Ministry of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. Business (Defra).
Defra suggested that processed pork products such as sausages, bacon and offal shipped from Britain to China last year generated £100 million for local producers. A further £80 million came from the export of “pork” and related “products”, the ministry said in a statement.
However, in the same statement, the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) suggested the agreement could only apply to “two UK sites”.
Graham Wilkinson, the CEO of the AHDB, which helped secure the deal, said: “China is our largest export market for the pork sector and today’s announcement of the re-listing of two UK sites is very welcome news for the sector. ”
He added: “AHDB, working closely with government and industry, has played an integral role in this process, organizing technical discussions, gathering evidence to support official commitments and promoting the economic value to the UK pork industry to emphasize.”
Requested by Just eatAHDB said it could not share the names of the two “slaughterhouses” involved as it confirmed that some British pork companies had been suspended from China’s import list in 2020 during the pandemic.
The farmer-funded organization added that the “re-listing” of the two UK sites was issued by the General Administration of Customs of the People’s Republic of China.
In the meantime, Just eat has asked Defra to clarify the status of the new export agreement in terms of the exact pork products involved and the authorities to which the agreement with China applies.
In its statement, Defra said China is the largest market for British pork outside the EU.
Together with the AHDB, the agreement was brokered during a “recent” visit to China by a government delegation accompanied by the Department for Business and Trade and the UK Export Certification Partnership (UKECP).
Trade Secretary Douglas Alexander said: “China is already a huge market for British pork companies, which exported £180 million worth of products to China last year alone.
“Today’s announcement will be welcome news for British farmers and producers affected by the suspension and could help UK pork exports grow even further.”
Daniel Zeichner, the Food Safety Secretary, added: “This is a huge win for Britain’s pork producers, who can now send their high-quality products to one of our biggest markets, worth £180 million.
