ONE billion dollars worth of extra market access for Australian red meat will kick in on day one of the United Kingdom Australia Free Trade Agreement under current export prices.
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Those are the calculations industry leaders have put together as they wait patiently for finalisation of the FTA that has been described as the 'best deal Australian beef has done'.
The United Kingdom now has to ratify the FTA, and beef industry leaders expect that to happen in the first quarter of next year.
Meat & Livestock Australia managing director Jason Strong said the UK FTA added up to a 'material increase in the bucket of preferential access Australian red meat has around the world.'
Speaking at the MLA Updates forum held this week in Toowoomba, Queensland, Mr Strong said the UK deal was unique in that it had a line of sight to full liberalisation.
"Over ten years, we get to a point of no tariffs and quotas," he said.
"There is a footnote, with some restrictions if we go over significant volumes for a period of time.
"In year one, we get an extra 25,000 tonnes of sheep meat access and 35,000t of beef - at the moment we are sending single digit thousands of tonnes into the UK and with a 20pc tariff on the beef side.
"One of the really neat things about the UK is that it is our highest value market, per kilogram."
Mr Strong also said the deal provided a broader opportunity for type of product.
"One thing still being worked out is how we verify non-HGP (hormone growth promotant) status and an industry working group is on that job," he said.
MLA's industry insights and strategy manager Scott Cameron told the hundreds of beef producers at the Toowoomba event that 86pc of Australia's red meat exports now benefited from preferential, or free trade agreement, access.
The industry's 2030 target was 90pc, he said.
The FTA with India was also now awaiting ratification. It will deliver, over ten years, $600m in new market opportunities for Australian sheep meat.
An FTA with the European Union remains under negotiation but the process was speeding up, the forum heard. Here, there were 450m people in the high income group identified as having a strong desire to consume Australian beef and lamb.
The other market in line for FTA negotiations that would benefit red meat producers was the UAE, Mr Cameron reported.
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Shan Goodwin
Shan Goodwin steers ACM’s national coverage of the beef industry. Shan has worked as a journalist for 30 years, the majority of that with agricultural publications. She spent many years as The Land’s North Coast reporter and has visited beef properties and stations throughout the country and overseas. She treats all breeds equally. Contact 0427686187. E: s.goodwin@austcommunitymedia.com.au
Shan Goodwin steers ACM’s national coverage of the beef industry. Shan has worked as a journalist for 30 years, the majority of that with agricultural publications. She spent many years as The Land’s North Coast reporter and has visited beef properties and stations throughout the country and overseas. She treats all breeds equally. Contact 0427686187. E: s.goodwin@austcommunitymedia.com.au
