World Food Expo, Culinary Competition Showcase U.S. Meat in the Philippines

U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines Philip Goldberg samples U.S. meat products on display at World Food Expo in Manila

U.S. pork, beef and lamb were front and center at the 14th annual World Food Expo in Manila, Philippines. This four-day event, the Philippines’ largest and most anticipated food show, attracted more than 54,000 attendees. USMEF’s participation was supported by the Pork Checkoff, the Beef Checkoff Program and the USDA Market Access Program (MAP).

“World Food Expo is such a great opportunity for USMEF to showcase U.S. pork, beef and lamb in the Philippine market,” said USMEF-ASEAN Director Sabrina Yin. “Buyers at this event are always looking for new products, and this is an excellent venue for introducing them.”

U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines Philip Goldberg visited the USMEF booth, speaking with several buyers and participating suppliers. Company experts were also on hand to answer questions about new products and explain the unique attributes of U.S. meat, and the USMEF booth offered local importers a great opportunity to meet one-on-one with prospective customers.

Competing chefs display U.S. pork entrees at the Philippines Culinary Cup

The event also provided a venue in which importers could discuss trade obstacles and other concerns that have recently surfaced in this market. For the past seven months, Manila’s ports have been severely congested due to the city’s daytime ban on cargo trucks. In some instances, importers are required to pay demurrage fees until containers are released. Other concerns include a recent pronouncement by the Philippine Department of Agriculture restricting the eligibility of imported meat entering the country to a maximum of six months from the date of slaughter.

“While this is an excellent market for U.S. meat exports, the regulatory environment in the Philippines can be challenging at times,” Yin explained. “Importers appreciate the opportunity to voice their concerns to USMEF and discuss ways to improve product flow, and that’s another reason the U.S. industry benefits from having a strong, consistent presence at this event.”

In conjunction with World Food Expo, USMEF and Alternatives Food Corporation sponsored the Philippines Culinary Cup – a U.S. pork and beef culinary competition. Now in its sixth year, this competition is one of the most prestigious in the region and endorsed by the World Association of Chefs Societies. Chefs from the Philippines, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand vied for honors in the pork category by creating dishes featuring U.S. pork short ribs. In the beef category, chefs worked with U.S. outside skirt.

The Philippines is the largest market in the ASEAN region for U.S. beef and pork. In the first seven months of 2014, U.S. beef/beef variety meat exports to the Philippines totaled 8,123 metric tons (mt), up 16 percent from a year ago, while value increased 3 percent to $35 million. Pork/pork variety meat exports were down 18 percent in volume (24,879 mt) and 6 percent in value ($66.4 million), due in part to a large increase of European pork entering the market. Although still a small destination for U.S. lamb, exports nearly tripled in volume (31 mt, +182 percent) and increased 53 percent in value to $170,000.