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Ireland will waste no time in exploiting the opportunities for Irish beef and dairy, Minister for Agriculture Michael Creed has vowed.
“The addition of Japan as a potentially important export outlet, particularly for sectors such as beef and dairy, which are especially exposed to the impact of Brexit, is hugely important, and an opportunity which we shall waste no time in exploiting,” said Minister Creed on Thursday morning.
Speaking after the announcement of the EU-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement in Brussels on Thursday by European Council president Donald Tusk and Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe, Minister Creed said: “This is a hugely important development for the EU agri-food sector, and will present very real opportunities for Irish agri-food exporters."
Irish beef
“The news is particularly good for the Irish beef sector, as the agreement contains very significant concessions in relation to Japanese market access for European Union beef. I want to extend my sincere congratulations to Commissioners Hogan and Malmström, who very skilfully brought these negotiations to a conclusion in recent days.”
The agreement on beef provides for annual export quantities of 43,500t of European beef product (or approximately 56,000t of carcase weight equivalent) at tariff rates which will fall from 38.5% currently to 27.5% in the first year of implementation, and then to 9% over a 15-year period.
Minister Creed said the concessions achieved on beef are “particularly significant and represent a huge opportunity which I am determined will be utilised to the maximum possible extent by the Irish beef sector”.
Pigmeat
He added that the pigmeat outcome is also extremely positive. Japan will significantly reduce the tariffs applied to imported pigmeat over the period of the agreement, and for cheese and dairy products, where the agreement provides for the full liberalisation of tariffs on hard cheeses, including cheddar, over 15 years.
Minister Creed emphasised the importance of this agreement against the backdrop of the challenges presented by Brexit.
“This is a particularly welcome development as we increase our focus on market diversification and the need to reduce our dependence on the UK market."
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