A group of UK meat exporters received training on meeting US regulatory requirements for beef and lamb imports during a visit to Washington DC last week.
The training, which took place at a number of facilities, focused on helping delegates understand a number of areas of specific interest to UK exporters.
The delegation, organised by AHDB Beef & Lamb, Hybu Cig Cymru, Quality Meat Scotland, Livestock & Meat Commission Northern Ireland and the British Embassy in the US, marked a key step in preparing for the official inspection visit, which is expected to happen during 2017.
These included Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) inspection requirements, Port of Entry requirements, Shiga Toxin-Producing E. coli (STEC) testing requirements and procedures, along with increasing awareness of the US marketplace and typical challenges facing overseas importers.
AHDB Beef & Lamb Head of Global Supply Chain Development Dr Phil Hadley said: “The industry representatives found the visit very worthwhile and the preliminary training puts us in a good position to ensure that we are able to agree equivalence between UK and US regulatory requirements when the inspection visit takes place.
“The dynamic US market offers significant opportunities for UK beef and lamb at a time when it’s particularly important for us to develop new markets alongside ensuring we maintain demand in existing markets.”
