Every year, hundreds of millions of pounds worth of various meat exports are sent from Great Britain, to countries all over the world, often commanding a premium price due its premium reputation and quality. Scottish breeds of cattle such as aberdeen angus, highland cattle and belted galloway have a world class reputation for tender, lean and juicy meat.
Most common meat exports
The most common meats that are exported are:
- Beef
- Lamb/mutton
- Pork
- Poultry (chicken, turkey)
- Venison
These can be exported in various forms, including:
- Carcasses – whole or split
- Cuts or joints
- Offal, tripe
- Minced meat
- Meat products*
- Meat preparations*
- Meat as part of another product eg composite products
* Meat products
EU law defines a meat product as “processed products resulting from the processing of meat or from the further processing of such processed products, so that the cut surface shows that the product no longer has the characteristics of fresh meat.” eg cooked meats, biltong, bacon.
* Meat preparations
These are defined as “fresh meat, including meat that has been reduced to fragments, which has had foodstuffs, seasonings or additives added to it or which has undergone processes insufficient to modify the internal muscle fibre structure of the meat and thus to eliminate the characteristics of fresh meat.” eg sausages, joints with herbs.
How can Amivet help me?
Are you looking for new ways to increase your turnover? Might exporting be for you? Want to know to which markets you can export?
Find out how Amivet can help – whether you are a first time exporter or have done it many times before, we can offer a tailored solution to make the process as easy as possible.
Export health certificate
In the vast majority of cases, to export meat from GB, you will require an export health certificate or “EHC”, signed by an official veterinarian, or OV. Following inspection of the meat exports and supporting documents such as movement records, a support health attestation from a veterinarian at the slaughterhouse and results of any laboratory tests required, the OV will sign and stamp the EHC, which assures the importing country that the goods are as described and do not carry any risk of introducing any animal or human disease into that country.
Common Export/Import Considerations
While every country has its own import rules, there are some common factors that are worth bearing in mind:
- Do you need an import permit?
- Does any premises require specific approval for export?
- Are there any restrictions on amount or quota?
- What labelling requirements are there?
- Are there any halal or kosher specifications?
- Can the goods be shipped chilled, frozen of ambient?
- Is there an EHC for the type of meat you wish to export?
- Are there any restrictions on the country of origin?
Many importing countries are concerned about introducing disease via imported meat, which can lead to restrictions such as:
- A complete ban
- A ban on imports from certain parts or regions of GB
- A limit on what parts of meat are allowed
- A requirement for a heat treatment
The major diseases of note are BSE (“mad cow disease”), HPAI (“bird flu”) and ASF/CSF (“swine fever”). More details on these can be found at WOAH.
Our OVs can cover most parts of GB, however we have a particularly strong team in the central Scotland belt, around the cities of Glasgow and Edinburgh.
Our export tool allows you to search by country for what specific EHCs are available. More detail about the certification process is given here.
