January 18, 2011

Turkey's market opens to Irish beef imports

Ireland has agreed on a veterinary health certificate with the Turkish authorities to allow Irish beef from animals aged 30 months or under (with certain conditions) to be exported to Turkey, said Minister Brendan Smith.

The Turkish market has only recently re-opened to EU beef after 14 years and in the last few months, many member states, including Ireland, have been negotiating with the authorities there on certification issues. Minister Smith says while 99% of Irish beef exports go to the high-value EU market, Turkey, with a population of almost 75 million people, offers another potentially important outlet to the Irish beef industry.

He underlined his commitment to gaining access to as many markets as possible for Irish meat exporters. "In this regard, 2010 has been successful, thanks to the re-opening of several other markets including China and Russia for pigmeat, the United Arab Emirates, Tunisian and Moroccan markets for beef, the Moroccan market for live cattle and sheep meat and the South Korean market for breeding pigs," the minister said.