Audio: Processing Seminars in China Showcase Quality, Consistency of U.S. Pork

U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) Technical Services Manager Travis Arp has just returned from China, where he helped conduct educational seminars for employees of two large meat processing companies. The three-day seminars were designed to showcase the attributes of U.S. pork as a high-quality raw material for sausages, deli meats and other processed pork products.

Arp explains that consistency is one of the strongest selling points of U.S. pork, especially when compared to Chinese domestic pork and raw materials from some of China’s other foreign suppliers. He cites the consistent lean point of U.S. pork, along with water-holding capacity and color stability, as advantages that are of great importance to meat processors.

Last year the China/Hong Kong region was the third-largest destination for U.S. pork and pork variety meat, with exports totaling 417,306 metric tons valued at $903 million. Exports in 2014 (through February) are down 6 percent in volume compared to last year’s pace, but are 4 percent higher in value.

TRANSCRIPT:

Joe Schuele: In this U.S. Meat Export Federation report we speak with USMEF Technical Services Manager Travis Arp, who has just returned from China where he helped conduct educational seminars for employees of two large meat processing companies. The three-day seminars were designed to showcase the attributes of U.S. pork as a high-quality raw material for sausages, deli meats, and other processed pork products.

Travis Arp: The purpose of our seminar was partially to capacity build with those processors, teaching them some of the common western style production techniques. But at the same time, we showed them how U.S. raw materials fit into improving the overall quality of not only those style of pork products but also many of the current processed pork products that they produce on an everyday basis. Processed pork products are extremely popular amongst Chinese consumers, but these processors see continued growth and demand for western-style products - smoked sausages, frankfurters, and hot dogs, deli meat style hams. And so they want to be on the front end of that in providing some of those new products to consumers in addition to the more traditional Chinese sausages.

Joe Schuele: Arp explains that consistency is of great importance to meat processors and that is one of the strongest selling points of U.S. Pork.

Travis Arp: The U.S. can provide an extremely consistent product from a lean point advantage. If they are buying boneless butts in container loads, then each one of those is going to be really similar in terms of lean point. Also pH, water holding capacity, color stability, those are all really big consistency advantages that the U.S. can provide over most other suppliers in the world, certainly over Chinese domestic pork.

Joe Schuele: For more on this and other trade issues please visit USMEF.org. For the U.S. Meat Export Federation, I’m Joe Schuele.