Will lifting the US beef ban put more foreign meat on menus?
How much beef do we get from the US each year?
Australia imports no beef from the US. The change announced today will allow beef back in. But don't hold your breath waiting for a surge of US imports. 'I don't believe there will be any major volumes flowing from the US to Australia', said Rabobank senior analyst Angus Gidley-Baird. 'US exports volumes this year in total are declining at the moment, because they have lower beef supplies available and higher beef prices, making them less competitive.'
In time, Gidley-Baird said: 'There is opportunity for more select food service operators who might want to put it on the menu as a one-item as something special.' An example would be a US-style steakhouse that wants to feature American beef.
Does this mean our stores and restaurants will start selling US beef?
Given the pricing, Gidley-Baird thinks it would be unlikely. US beef costs the same if not more than high-quality Australian beef. McDonald's Australia uses 100 per cent Australian beef which it plans to continue to do. Costco, Hungry Jacks, Grill'd, Betty's Burgers, Boss Burger have been contacted for comment. Littleproud warns that US beef prices will fall one day, creating a path for US imports.
Is Australian beef better than US beef?
Australian beef tends to be less grain-fed than American beef. About 95 per cent of the US cattle 'continue to be finished, or fattened, on grain for the last 160 to 180 days of life' involving feedlots, or an animal feeding operation a US researcher has said.
In Australia, the share of cattle in feedlots is closer to 35-40 per cent, with the steer spending more time in pastures, 'which does lend itself to a leaner product and slightly different flavour,' said Gidley-Baird.
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Does the Coalition support the changes?
Coalition partners the Nationals are seeking a scientific review of the decision behind the change. Cattle Australia, which supports grass-fed beef producers, also supports a review. 'There's a lot of community concern around this,' CEO of Cattle Australia Will Evans said. 'There is a lot of consumer concern and a lot of industry concern around this.'
Is US beef safe? Will there be transparency?
Evans said his group had not taken issue so much with the science that the government used, but the regime of detailed safety checks that the Australian industry will be able to hold the US to. Evans said if and when US cattle is exported to Australia, it's on a producer-by-producer basis rather than for the entire industry. Currently, Japan and Australia's beef industry have in place a series of standards, including detailed inspections of each other's farms, to ensure mutual trust among the exporters.
Evans said that there appears to be 'some kind of politicisation of this specific topic' but from the perspective of the Australian industry: 'This is an issue that we've known about for quite some time that predates President Trump. This is something that obviously got elevated by his commentary this year, but it was an existing issue.'
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