Nation's beef imports to China moving ahead

French beef looks set to return to Chinese dinner tables after 17 years in the wilderness, as China's beef import market looks to further open up, according to Chinese media reports.

An array of high-quality French beef was showcased to potential buyers at the first China International Import Expo in Shanghai in 2018, marking its formal return to the Chinese market.

Chen Jia, vice-president of supermarket giant Metro China, said the CIIE has created an efficient and convenient platform for international purchases.

Metro China inked a range of cooperative agreements with companies of imported products during the first CIIE last year.

As part of the agreements, the supermarket recently announced it will be stocking French beef in its 97 chain supermarkets in 59 cities across the country.

Lin Guofa, research director of Bric Agri-Info Group, said that China's per capita consumption of meat is about 60 kilograms, which is twice the world average.

However, Chinese consumers mainly consume pork, and the per capita consumption of beef and mutton is far lower than the world average, Lin said.

Statistics from the General Administration of Customs showed that China imported 1.04 million metric tons of beef last year and the number was 105,000 tons in December.

"It is a landmark that the quantity of beef imported to China topped 1 million tons, and the beef demand in the country will maintain strong growth in the next decade," Lin said.

"French meat production companies choose the Chinese market due to its huge potential and its significance to the world," said Fanye Meng, chief representative of Inaporc & Interbev China, an association aimed at helping more French meat companies develop business in China.

In January, the association held the official launch ceremony for French beef sales in China.

Companies engaged in beef sales and processing from the two countries signed agreements to import French beef to China during the event.

The move indicates that French beef has completely returned to the Chinese market, Meng said.

This year, France is the guest of honor at the second CIIE, which is providing more opportunities for French beef companies to develop businesses in China.

The re-entry of French beef into the Chinese market is conducive to promoting well-known cuts of meat from France, learning about different lifestyles and providing Chinese people with more options, Meng said.

"This year marks the 70th anniversary of the People's Republic of China and the 55th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and France," he said. "We do hope Chinese and French companies can work to seek more cooperation at the trade fair."

liangkaiyan@chinadaily.com.cn

(China Daily 11/06/2019 page13)