A team of 24 leaders and producers from beef, pork, corn and soybean organizations from across the U.S. visited Japan last week to see firsthand the marketing efforts of U.S. beef and pork in the country by the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF). The group visited retail displays, a beef tongue processing facility, a processing facility and wagyu auction in the heart of Tokyo and shared photos of their farms with students at a culinary school. Don Swanson, an Iowa cattle producer who went on the trip representing the Iowa Beef Industry Council, said the current issues with the U.S. cattle herd make this trade relationship even more important.
Swanson said Japanese consumers enjoy the specialty cuts that aren’t as popular in the U.S., which adds more value to U.S. beef carcasses.
Gordon Spronk of the National Pork Board visited a number of restaurants serving tonkatsu, a dish featuring breaded pork loin. Many of those restaurants feature U.S. pork, providing a key market for a cut that is undervalued in the U.S.
As the red meat trade relationship with Japan through USMEF gets ready to celebrate 50 years, USMEF President and CEO Dan Halstrom says that trade has surpassed a key milestone. According to trade data from USDA, U.S. beef and pork sales to Japan since 1977 surpassed the $100 billion mark in July.
For more information, visit usmef.org.
