Ulster Farmers’ Union President Harry Sinclair has said that the lifting of the outdated ban on EU beef imports into the USA is “welcome and long overdue.” The comments were made following the recent announcement by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) that US legislation on beef imports will be brought into line with international standards for BSE.
Harry Sinclair said; “It was high time that the USA removed their unjustified import ban on EU beef and recognised our low BSE risk status. Northern Ireland produces world class beef and the re-opening of the US market provides an excellent opportunity for us. There is no time to waste and the focus now should be on getting the necessary approvals in place for exporting to the USA as quickly as possible.
“Disappointingly, the USA still has a ban on EU lamb and hopefully swift action will be taken to rectify this as soon as possible.”
