Beef reaches China by sea

Chinese news source xinhuanet.com reported on Sept. 5 that the Shanghai Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau confirmed the first shipment of U.S. beef by sea entered China on Sept. 1. Air shipments of beef to China began in June ending a 14-year ban on beef from the U.S. The shipment of frozen beef weighed 15.1 metric tons and was valued more than $300,000 U.S., according to the bureau. When asked if the information was accurate, U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) Economist Erin Borror told WLJ that the most timely data USMEF uses to track beef exports is the weekly export sales data reported by USDA. Although these reports do not separate air freight from ocean freight, the volumes reported suggest that at least one container of beef was shipped to China in each of two weeks in July. The USDA data also suggest that about three containers were shipped the week of Aug. 11 and again during the week of Aug. 18. “Again, we can’t absolutely confirm that these shipments were made by ocean freight. But the weekly volumes are large enough that all of the product being shipped by air is very unlikely.” The xinhuanet.com report noted that reopening of the Chinese market to U.S. beef, one of the first results from the China-United States 100-day action plan reached in May, and it “may well start a new chapter in bilateral economic and trade cooperation.”