China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) announced on Friday to launch a safeguard investigation into imported beef, starting from December 27, 2024.
The survey covers the period from Jan 1, 2019 to June 30, 2024, according to the ministry.
The MOFCOM on November 22 received the application for safeguard investigations for the beef industry of China submitted by a number of domestic associations, in which the applicants requested to conduct safeguard investigation into imported beef.
The applicants said that the sharp increase in the number of imports of beef products under application for investigation had caused an impact on China’s domestic industry, and that there is a causal relationship between the increase of imports and the serious injury to China’s domestic industry.
On December 19, the Global Times learned from an industry source that China Animal Agriculture Association (CAAA) has prepared related materials and submitted an application to relevant authorities, hoping to use WTO rules to help address the beef industry’s temporary difficulties amid significant challenges in domestic operations and surging beef imports.
The CAAA held a video conference on December 19 on the domestic beef production situation, attended by heads of relevant industry associations from nine major production provinces and regions, including North China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, Northeast China’s Jilin and Liaoning provinces, and East China’s Shandong Province, according to the source.
At the meeting, all attendees highlighted that currently, production and operation of China’s beef industry is facing serious difficulties. In November, the national average price of beef was 60.04 yuan ($8.23) per kilogram, a 14.79 percent year-on-year drop and the lowest level since September 2019.
Even worse, farmers in some areas have already sold off and slaughtered breeding cows on a large scale, seriously undermining the foundation of China’s beef industry, according to industry leaders at the meeting.
At the same time, industry leaders noted at the meeting, China’s imports of foreign beef have grown rapidly, particularly between 2019 and 2023, during which beef imports surged by 65 percent. In the first half of 2024, beef imports more than doubled those in the first half of 2019.
Meanwhile, nearly 70 percent of Chinese cattle farmers are currently incurring losses, according to the industry leaders at the meeting.
“In order to help the industry overcome the difficulties, the association has prepared related materials and submitted an application to relevant authorities, hoping to use WTO rules to alleviate the temporary challenges facing the industry,” the industry source said.
