Lamb Industry Leaders Discuss Market Access, Export Expansion with USMEF

Representatives of the U.S. lamb industry discussed new marketing opportunities in foreign destinations and how to best address longstanding market closures and market access restrictions at the USMEF headquarters in Denver this week. The team included Dr. Dennis Stiffler, CEO of Mountain States Rosen, who represents the lamb producing and feeding industry on the USMEF Executive Committee; Elizabeth Dressler, director of marketing and technical services for Mountain States Rosen; Megan Wortman, executive director of the American Lamb Board; Gary Pfeiffer, executive vice president of sales and marketing for Superior Farms Lamb; and Peter Orwick, executive director of the American Sheep Industry Association.

While lost export opportunities suffered by the U.S. beef industry due to BSE are well-known and often discussed by the agricultural and business media, foreign market closures due to scrapie – an encephalopathy similar to BSE - have also been a significant obstacle for the lamb industry. Japan, Russia, Taiwan and South Korea are markets in which a resumption of lamb trade could present promising opportunities for U.S. lamb, especially in the foodservice sector. U.S. lamb also lacks access to the European Union due to, unresolved issues other than scrapie.

“These are markets that we want to study carefully and work with the U.S. government to regain access,” said Paul Clayton, USMEF senior vice president for export services. “Russia is a unique case due to the Customs Union (which includes Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan), and the lamb provisions in that agreement could mean progress near the end of this year. With the EU, it’s a matter of working with the industry and the U.S. government to develop an export program that will allow us to begin serving that market.”

Clayton noted that discussions also focused on how to expand export opportunities for U.S. lamb in markets that are currently open, including several Caribbean destinations, Canada, Mexico, the Middle East and Hong Kong.

“The largest role in the world market is clearly held by grass-fed lamb from Australia and especially New Zealand,” he said. “But our grain-fed product offers unique quality, texture, flavor and portion size. There are excellent opportunities for differentiation, but further market research is needed to identify the most promising prospects for growth.”

He added that the U.S. industry may also be able to provide chilled product to those markets that only have access to frozen lamb from New Zealand or Australia, especially when targeting foodservice customers.

“This was a really beneficial exchange of information, meeting with representatives from all sectors of the lamb industry and working toward a comprehensive strategy in terms of both market access and market development,” said USMEF President and CEO Philip Seng. “USMEF has worked productively with the lamb industry to achieve growth in the markets where we currently have access, and we will certainly continue to do that. Focusing on global expansion allows us to explore new ideas and broader possibilities, and I feel that everyone came away from this meeting feeling very positive about the road ahead.”