July 26, 2018

US red meat exports to South Africa are a growing progress

In a recent trip to South Africa, Cheyenne McEndaffer, US Meat Export Federation (USMEF) technical services manager met with several importers of US beef and pork as well as prospective customers who are interested in US red meat products.

US beef and pork exports regained access to South Africa in 2016. "Most US exports to date have consisted of beef livers and other beef offal.

South Africa now ranks as the second-largest (behind Egypt) destination for US beef livers. Beef middle meats have also gained some traction in higher-end restaurants in South Africa's major cities," McEndaffer explained.

However, exporting pork to South Africa is more challenging as US pork offal is still banned in addition to South Africa imposing a number of restrictions on pork muscle cuts.

While Germany is the main pork supplier for South Africa, recently African swine fever (ASF) has been detected in several countries in the Baltic Region and Eastern Europe. This causes increasing ASF concerns in Germany. South African authorities responded by closing its market to countries where ASF is found.

Through May, US beef and beef offal exports to South Africa totalled up to 5,829 tonnes, amounting to US$7 million. Pork exports were 383 tonnes and valued at US$356,000.