SIAL Paris Puts Quality of U.S. Beef, Pork on Global Stage

Placing U.S. beef and pork on a global stage, USMEF joined member companies at SIAL Paris 2016, an international trade show described as a "global showcase of the food chain.” USMEF’s exhibit, where traders from Europe, China, Japan, Russia, the Middle East, South America, Ukraine, Africa and Southeast Asia came to discuss U.S. products, was funded by the USDA Market Access Program.

Traders from around the world gather at the USMEF exhibit at SIAL Paris 2016

The four-day show, which attracted more than 155,000 visitors, featured 7,000 exhibitors from 104 countries.

“This activity is part of USMEF’s strategy to strengthen its position in Europe and surrounding markets and help the traders to increase their sales of U.S. red meat products,” said Felipe Macias, USMEF representative in the European Union. “SIAL brought together all factors in the production and distribution of food, and also introduced new trends and innovations.”

Stan Garbacz, international trade director for the Nebraska Department of Agriculture; Jerry Wiggs, sales director with Greater Omaha Packing Company; Greg Ibach, Nebraska Department of Agriculture director, and USMEF’s Dan Halstrom at SIAL Paris 2016

Face-to-face meetings with traders promoted the quality and availability of U.S. beef and pork

Dan Halstrom, USMEF senior vice president for marketing, said SIAL Paris revealed growing excitement for U.S. beef and pork – but also shed light on global competition facing the U.S. red meat industry.

"In talking with our members and people in the trade who were at the show, there is enthusiasm for the coming year, as we have additional supply of both U.S. beef and pork,” said Halstrom. “The quality of our products continues to drive demand. That being said, global competition was in full force at the show as well, with Brazil, Europe, Australia, Canada and others being very aggressive. It helps give us an idea of the opportunities that are out there, and motivates us to work harder to displace the competition."

USMEF members participated in face-to-face meetings with traders and were encouraged by what they heard during the show.

“We’ve been a regular attendee at SIAL and we continue to see growing demand for U.S. beef into Europe, driven by the high-quality marbling and superior taste experience,” said Bernard Rigal, managing director of Denver-based Platte Valley Food Group. “Participating at SIAL provides our company a venue to showcase our beef products to buyers and interested parties from around the world, all in one place.”

Mark Boyd, director of export sales for Porky Products, said SIAL helped his company gauge interest and explore potential new markets.

“My observation is that SIAL has evolved into a virtual global show, with a heavy concentration of Asian customers, as well as customers from growing regions around the world,” said Boyd. “After talking to people at this year’s show and hearing more about emerging markets, we are excited about the prospects going forward into new markets such as South Africa and West Africa."