The British pork industry took centre stage at one of the biggest food and hospitality shows in China last month.
FHC China 2017, at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre, was part of the government's work to develop relationships with China, in what is seen as an increasingly important market.
It follows news of the UK gaining the green light to ship pork products to its second largest market outside of the EU, China.
China is as a ‘very high’ potential market for UK pig meat exports and it is already the UK’s biggest customer outside the EU, importing 40,000 tonnes of UK pork and 36,000 tonnes of UK offal in 2016.
For the first time, AHDB Pork moved from the Great British Pavilion to the dedicated Meat Hall at FHC China to take advantage of the increased footfall over the three days.
AHDB was joined by five UK pork exporters, who used the British Meat Pavilion to liaise with key stakeholders from the Chinese supply chain. The exhibition attracted more than 2,400 companies from 70 countries and regions and over 90,000 trade buyers.
'Fifth quarter'
AHDB’s Senior Export Manager Jonathan Eckley said: “This year’s exhibition was very well attended and our exporters commented they enjoyed good interaction with both existing and potentially new clients during the three days.
“FHC China is an incredibly important show for AHDB as it is dedicated to imported products only across all food sectors and provides the opportunity to engage with key players in the food service sector as well as the wider supply chain.”
There is particular benefit to the Britihs pork industry in exporting the so-called ‘fifth quarter’ – products that have limited domestic demand in the UK but are prized in the Chinese market.
Farming minister George Eustice has previously explained that farmers could gain a financial advantage after Brexit by increasing exports of chicken feet to China.
Mr Eustice said farmers had the opportunity to increase exports of the popular snack to China and other regions where parts of the bird are rejected by British shoppers.
Mr Eckley added: “This is the last show of the year for us in China and it was great to finish on a high note, despite current challenges on the Chinese pork market, there was a real buzz in the Meat Hall.”
