Eight delegates from the UK pork processing and exporting industry have spent time this week visiting local retailers and meeting with leading importers and supply chain distributors to gain valuable insight into future opportunities for pig meat.
Organised by the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB), the visit to Taipei follows an announcement earlier this year that Taiwan had granted access to UK pork imports for the first time.
This followed a detailed process of inspections and negotiations led by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) alongside AHDB, the UK Export Certification Partnership (UKECP) and others.
According to AHDB, Taiwan “offers a number of exciting opportunities for the UK pork industry” due to a population of more than 23 million people and some of the highest rates of meat consumption per capita in Asia. This comes as a recent AHDB report revealed that UK fresh and frozen pork exports in July dropped 10% year-on-year.
AHDB head of Asia Pacific Jonathan Eckley said: “This is an incredibly important mission for some of the UK’s leading processors and exporters of pork. We aim to help them gain first-hand insight into this exciting new market, exploring everything from the local market scene through to high-end retailers and the all-important food service sector.
“A key part of this trip will be the business-to-business meeting sessions which connects our exporters with key stakeholders in the supply chain in Taiwan. We understand that relationships are key to the international meat business, which is particularly the case in Asian markets. The introductions made by AHDB can be invaluable in facilitating trade.”
In September, Taiwan opened its doors to Japanese beef while AHDB recently visited China on a trade mission.