American agricultural lobbies ramp up calls for new tariffs on NZ beef and lamb.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand chair Kate Acland is gearing up for her second visit this year to the United States as calls from American farmers grow louder for US President Donald Trump to hit Australian and NZ meat exports with tariffs.
Acland will depart “in a few months” to make the case for continued uninterrupted access to the US market after the Ranchers Cattlemen Action Legal Fund United Stockgrowers of America (R-CALF) became the second US agricultural lobby to call for tariffs to stem surging sheepmeat imports from Australia and NZ.
R-CALF also called for a 25% tariff on South American, Australian and NZ beef imports.
“The theory and practice of free trade, as exemplified by zero tariffs, has all but destroyed the US commercial sheep industry and is causing the rapid contraction of the domestic beef supply chain,” R-CALF said.
Meanwhile beef imports in 2024 surged to record levels, 37% above the five-year average as US producers struggled to match consumer demand, it said.
“America needs more cattle and sheep farmers and ranchers and more cattle and sheep.
“Tariffs and tariff-rate quotas are the economic tool that will incentivise domestic market forces to make this happen,” R-CALF said.
Acland said R-CALF’s views contrasted with those of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA), whose annual convention she attended last month in San Antonio.
The NCBA considers NZ to be a “consistent, reliable trading partner”, Acland said.
Not represented at the conference was R-CALF or the American Sheep Industry Association (ASI), which in December said it intended to raise with the Trump transition team the matter of tariffs on Australian and NZ lamb imports.
Acland said “many of the ranchers” she spoke to in San Antonio expressed concerns about the potential for Trump’s trade policies to disrupt North American beef and cattle supply chains.
Last year Mexico supplied 1.5 million cattle, and Canada 150,000, for finishing on US farms and feedlots but that trade is under threat from proposed US tariffs.
“We are closely monitoring developments, including recent statements made by R-CALF, and will continue advocating for NZ producers and the complementary nature of our beef and lamb exports,” Acland said.
“I am intending to make another trip to the US in a few months where I’ll meet with key stakeholders to ensure the vital contribution of NZ beef and lamb imports to American rangers, producers and consumers is well understood.”
Beef + Lamb NZ (BLNZ) has previously argued NZ lamb complements local production by keeping lamb in front of US consumers during seasonal lulls. Likewise, NZ lean beef complements US beef as a key ingredient in hamburger patties.
Before Acland leaves again for the US, BLNZ will continue to make its case to US industry groups and government officials through its Washington DC-based representative, Jason Frost.
Snowstorms prevented Acland from travelling to Washington DC in February.
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