USMEF’s Seng Briefs Japanese Media on Industry Trends

USMEF’s Seng Briefs Japanese Media on Industry Trends

More than 40 trade and general media outlets were in attendance Monday in Tokyo as USMEF President and CEO Philip Seng provided an overview of the export market for U.S. beef and pork products in Japan.  In addition, members of USMEF’s Tokyo staff reported on consumer perceptions and the outlook for the year ahead.

Seng noted that 2009 was a challenging year for the food industry in Japan with a 2.6 percent drop in supermarket food sales and a 1.5 percent drop in the foodservice market. However, U.S. pork continued to be the No. 1 provider of pork to Japan, exporting more than 400,000 metric tons (nearly 882 million pounds) of muscle cuts valued at $1.5 billion. The United States now holds 46 percent of the imported pork market share in Japan (up steadily from 30 percent in 2004) and 72 percent of the chilled pork market.

Phil Seng briefs the media in Tokyo

And while access for U.S. beef exports to Japan has been limited to 20 months of age or younger, Seng noted that even in challenging conditions, U.S. beef muscle cut exports jumped 17 percent to 81,346 metric tons (more than 179 million pounds) valued at more than $411 million.  On behalf of the U.S. beef industry, he urged the governments of the U.S. and Japan to continue to work toward increasing market access for beef.

Looking ahead, Seng forecast increases in both beef and pork muscle cut exports to Japan in 2010, expecting totals to hit 100,000 metric tons of beef (more than 220 million pounds) and 430,000 metric tons (948 million pounds) of pork.

Seng emphasized the efforts made by U.S. beef, pork and lamb producers, packers and exporters to meet the stringent requirements of the Japanese market, and indicated that the U.S. red meat industry is prepared to provide and promote more versatile and high-value branded products – both fresh and processed – to meet the growing appetite of Japanese consumers for branded meat.

U.S. pork has gained traction with Japanese consumers preparing traditional winter dishes such as nabe (hot pot) and stewed pork favorites kakuni and nibuta. Through the end of February, USMEF conducted major winter retail promotions showcasing U.S. pork loin, belly and CT butt as featured ingredients in these popular dishes. Support for these promotions was provided by the Pork Checkoff and USDA’s Market Access Program (MAP).

USMEF also promotes the versatility of U.S. beef for restaurants that want to attract price-conscious diners. Yakiniku (Korean barbecue) is one of the largest sectors of the Japanese foodservice industry with approximately 20,000 outlets across the country. To increase penetration for U.S. beef in these popular restaurants, USMEF is promoting alternative beef cuts such as chuck rib, boneless short rib, chuck eye roll, brisket, outside skirt and tongue. With support from the Beef Checkoff and MAP, these cuts were recently featured by USMEF at the Yakiniku Business Fair in Tokyo, where many key buyers from Yakiniku restaurant chains were among the 13,000 attendees. USMEF demonstrated several new menu ideas at the event, including salted beef tartar, beef roll rice ball, beef and gelatin noodle salad and beef meat ball.

A strong presence in the processing sector is also critical to the success of U.S. pork and beef in Japan, which is why USMEF maintains close relationships with the country’s leading processors and distributors. Nippon Ham, Japan’s largest meat distributor and sausage manufacturer, prominently featured U.S. beef and pork at its mid-January product showcase in   Tokyo and at six similar regional events. In late January, a wide range of U.S. items was also promoted by Ito Ham, Japan’s second-largest meat distributor, at its product showcase. With support from the Beef Checkoff and Pork Checkoff programs, USMEF provided point-of-sale materials for U.S. beef and pork for all of these events.

“Japan will always be a destination for the finest cuts of U.S. pork and beef,” said Seng. “But when you’re facing tough economic conditions, it’s important to feature products that appeal to a wide range of consumers. The U.S. meat industry’s ability to deliver products of tremendous quality, value and versatility has been critical to the success we are seeing in Japan”

# # #

The U.S. Meat Export Federation (www.USMEF.org) is the trade association responsible for developing international markets for the U.S. red meat industry and is funded by USDA, exporting companies, and the beef, pork, corn and soybean checkoff programs.

For more information, contact Jim Herlihy at jherlihy@usmef.org.

USMEF complies with all equal opportunity, non-discrimination and affirmative action measures applicable to it by contract, government rule or regulation or as otherwise provided by law.

USMEF’s Seng Briefs Japanese Media on Industry Trends

More than 40 trade and general media outlets were in attendance Monday in Tokyo as USMEF President and CEO Philip Seng provided an overview of the export market for U.S. beef and pork products in Japan.  In addition, members of USMEF’s Tokyo staff reported on consumer perceptions and the outlook for the year ahead.

Seng noted that 2009 was a challenging year for the food industry in Japan with a 2.6 percent drop in supermarket food sales and a 1.5 percent drop in the foodservice market. However, U.S. pork continued to be the No. 1 provider of pork to Japan, exporting more than 400,000 metric tons (nearly 882 million pounds) of muscle cuts valued at $1.5 billion. The United States now holds 46 percent of the imported pork market share in Japan (up steadily from 30 percent in 2004) and 72 percent of the chilled pork market.

Phil Seng briefs the media in Tokyo

And while access for U.S. beef exports to Japan has been limited to 20 months of age or younger, Seng noted that even in challenging conditions, U.S. beef muscle cut exports jumped 17 percent to 81,346 metric tons (more than 179 million pounds) valued at more than $411 million.  On behalf of the U.S. beef industry, he urged the governments of the U.S. and Japan to continue to work toward increasing market access for beef.

Looking ahead, Seng forecast increases in both beef and pork muscle cut exports to Japan in 2010, expecting totals to hit 100,000 metric tons of beef (more than 220 million pounds) and 430,000 metric tons (948 million pounds) of pork.

Seng emphasized the efforts made by U.S. beef, pork and lamb producers, packers and exporters to meet the stringent requirements of the Japanese market, and indicated that the U.S. red meat industry is prepared to provide and promote more versatile and high-value branded products – both fresh and processed – to meet the growing appetite of Japanese consumers for branded meat.

U.S. pork has gained traction with Japanese consumers preparing traditional winter dishes such as nabe (hot pot) and stewed pork favorites kakuni and nibuta. Through the end of February, USMEF conducted major winter retail promotions showcasing U.S. pork loin, belly and CT butt as featured ingredients in these popular dishes. Support for these promotions was provided by the Pork Checkoff and USDA’s Market Access Program (MAP).

USMEF also promotes the versatility of U.S. beef for restaurants that want to attract price-conscious diners. Yakiniku (Korean barbecue) is one of the largest sectors of the Japanese foodservice industry with approximately 20,000 outlets across the country. To increase penetration for U.S. beef in these popular restaurants, USMEF is promoting alternative beef cuts such as chuck rib, boneless short rib, chuck eye roll, brisket, outside skirt and tongue. With support from the Beef Checkoff and MAP, these cuts were recently featured by USMEF at the Yakiniku Business Fair in Tokyo, where many key buyers from Yakiniku restaurant chains were among the 13,000 attendees. USMEF demonstrated several new menu ideas at the event, including salted beef tartar, beef roll rice ball, beef and gelatin noodle salad and beef meat ball.

A strong presence in the processing sector is also critical to the success of U.S. pork and beef in Japan, which is why USMEF maintains close relationships with the country’s leading processors and distributors. Nippon Ham, Japan’s largest meat distributor and sausage manufacturer, prominently featured U.S. beef and pork at its mid-January product showcase in   Tokyo and at six similar regional events. In late January, a wide range of U.S. items was also promoted by Ito Ham, Japan’s second-largest meat distributor, at its product showcase. With support from the Beef Checkoff and Pork Checkoff programs, USMEF provided point-of-sale materials for U.S. beef and pork for all of these events.

“Japan will always be a destination for the finest cuts of U.S. pork and beef,” said Seng. “But when you’re facing tough economic conditions, it’s important to feature products that appeal to a wide range of consumers. The U.S. meat industry’s ability to deliver products of tremendous quality, value and versatility has been critical to the success we are seeing in Japan”

# # #

The U.S. Meat Export Federation (www.USMEF.org) is the trade association responsible for developing international markets for the U.S. red meat industry and is funded by USDA, exporting companies, and the beef, pork, corn and soybean checkoff programs.

For more information, contact Jim Herlihy at jherlihy@usmef.org.

USMEF complies with all equal opportunity, non-discrimination and affirmative action measures applicable to it by contract, government rule or regulation or as otherwise provided by law.