Joe Carey (Clare, Fine Gael)
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42. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the progress made in opening and developing new markets for Irish beef; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [41664/17]

Joe Carey (Clare, Fine Gael)
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Against the backdrop of Brexit, identifying opportunities and securing business in a diversified range of markets have never been more important. I have put forward this question to establish the work that has been done to open and develop new markets for Irish beef.

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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My Department is always conscious of the need to gain access to new third country markets for the beef sector and improve and widen the existing levels of access that we enjoy. This was a central component of the Food Wise 2025 strategy and has been a key part of recent trade missions.

Ireland gained access to the US market in 2015, making it the first EU member state to gain access and we also enjoy access for beef intended for grinding. Ireland has been granted equivalence by the USDA in terms of its systems, which is a very significant achievement.

The promotion of Irish beef was a focal point for the trade mission to the United States and Mexico in June. While there, I announced the approval by the USDA of the process verified programme for labelling Irish beef as grass fed and reared outdoors. Irish beef is now on sale directly in retail for the first time in the USA. In Mexico I officially announced our intention to seek access for beef and there was significant engagement between experts at a technical level.

China is a very high priority for beef market access and significant progress has been made. In August my Department hosted an audit visit from the Chinese Certification and Accreditation Administration which undertook a series of plant inspection visits in order to assess the applications made by Irish beef processors to gain access to the Chinese market. Feedback form the audit team was broadly positive and we are awaiting the official report on its audit visit.

My Department has also hosted visits from two delegations from South Korea in the past two years in connection with our market access application. The most recent was in June and I intend to raise the issue of our beef market access application during my forthcoming trade mission to the country in November.

The beef sector received a boost at the beginning of 2017 with news of the reopening of the Egyptian market to Irish beef. In Saudi Arabia beef access has been expanded to include minced beef, cooked beef and processed beef as part of the trade mission earlier this year. We have also negotiated positive changes to the veterinary certification for beef to South Africa and Singapore, which has broadened access and opportunities for exports. We are actively pursuing opportunities to gain access in a number of other countries, including Vietnam and Ukraine.

Live exports have also been a significant feature in 2017, providing for a much needed balance in the marketplace, and to date in 2017 amount to some 157,000 head.

Joe Carey (Clare, Fine Gael)
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I welcome the progress made. Our beef exports to third countries represent only 5% of the total. Therefore, there is significant room for improvement. It is welcome that we have opened up markets in the United States and Mexico. I welcome the progress made in China and South Korea and also on live exports which I view as a very important market for us. I encourage the Minister to make further progress in that regard. Has he further plans in place to expand our markets? Has he trade missions in mind for the coming months and years? We need a sustained effort to market and promote our beef abroad. In Germany, for example, that has been done and one can see the improvements. I would like to hear from the Minister on this issue.

Michael Creed (Cork North West, Fine Gael)
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Notwithstanding Brexit, the United Kingdom will always be an important market. It takes in excess of 250,000 tonnes. It is important to say we are not walking away from that market. My Department and Bord Bia have put a lot of effort into securing the foothold we have in that market. Businesspeople will always seek the market that pays them best. The Deputy is correct that 50% of our beef goes to the United Kingdom. Most of the balance goes to mainland EU member states, with in the region of 5% going to third country markets. That reflects where the best price opportunities are available. The function of the Department is to make sure we open as many markets as possible. Thereafter the industry leverages one against the other to secure the maximum price, thereby, in theory, delivering the best opportunities to the primary producer.

In that context, we are working in the UK market. We hope to go on a trade mission to Japan and Korea later this year. Live exports are a critical export of the industry and are up, I understand, in the region of 45% in 2017.