New US Meat Processing Plants Approved for Export to China

Lorrie Boyer
Reporter
“The Phase One agreement has many benefits for US agriculture, but particularly related to plant approvals. Since the 2020 implementation of the Phase One agreement, China has further rolled out land and establishment registration processes that are fairly complex and fortunately for us beef and pork, Phase one takes precedent. USDA Food Safety Inspection Service Plan approvals are still what is recognized by China. And up until about December of last year, that process was working and in place, and then this year in 2023. We hadn't seen any plant list updates.”
Borror notes that while beef shipments to China are down from the record large volumes of 2022. China is still the fourth largest destination for US beef exports and has strong upside potential. China also remains the largest destination for us pork variety meats which are up 9% year over year to China.