April 7, 2016

UN vote could disrupt future Ireland-China beef trade

Ireland's recent vote at the United Nations Human Rights Council - which supported a US motion concerning China's human rights problems - could jeopardised a multimillion-euro beef trade between both countries, The Irish Times reported.

The Chinese government has expressed negative sentiments about the vote to the department of Simon Coveney, the Irish Minister for Agriculture.

At stake is a deal worth over EUR100 million (US$114 million), arranged following a plan to possibly end the ban on Irish beef entering China due to a BSE outbreak more than a decade ago.

The Department of Agriculture is currently "working closely" with Chinese authorities to finalise details pertaining to the future beef trade with China.