Japanese buyers have arrived in the UK to explore new red meat supply opportunities

Five Japanese importers joined a five-day mission to learn about sustainable beef, lamb and pork production.

The mission - the first domestic mission from Asia since the pandemic - included a series of visits to farms in the north of England, as well as a visit to a slaughterhouse and MEAT processing plant. The trip concluded on 25 May with a dinner at Butchers' Hall in London , where the delegation met with leading UK beef, lamb and pork exporters and explored new business opportunities.

Last year, exports of red meat from the UK hit a record high of £1.7 billion. This includes beef exports to Japan, which increased by 68% to £16.3m.

Jonathan Ackley, HEAD of International Trade Development, said:

“Japan is an important and growing market for our red meat exporters. We want to make the most of the opportunities presented there, with particular interest from Japanese consumers in high quality and sustainable food production, which the UK has excelled at.

The Japanese colleagues' visit provided us with an ideal platform to showcase our sustainable and high manufacturing standards throughout the supply chain, as well as to organize key meetings between Japanese buyers and UK exporters to potentially capitalize on opportunities in this valuable market.

EXPORT development is one of the key strategic goals of AHDB, which works in partnership with industry and government to expand opportunities for our red meat and dairy sector. Opportunities in Japan and other markets will be in the spotlight on June 22 at the AHDB export conference in London.

Missions like these play an important role in developing relationships with customers and key markets, and help our taxpayers make the most of their opportunities. With this in mind, we will be organizing another domestic mission in July with visitors from North America, Asia and the Middle East.”