Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to her Department’s press release entitled UK beef hits US shelves tariff-free for the first time – cutting costs for UK businesses, published on 2 March 2026, what assessment her Department has made of the animal welfare standards applied to the beef imports from the United States included in the 13,000 tonne quota referenced in the press release.

Through the UK-US Economic Prosperity Deal (EPD) negotiations, the UK has agreed preferential trading terms with the US in a range of sectors. This includes an exclusive reciprocal 13,000 tonne quota for beef. The quota is now open and worth up to £70 million a year if fully utilised. Hormone treated beef remains banned and is not permitted to enter the UK.

All agri-food products must comply with the UK’s high sanitary and phytosanitary standards and wider import requirements in order to be placed on the UK market. Products produced to different environmental and animal welfare standards can be placed on the UK market if they comply with these requirements. This has always been the case and includes products from the EU and other longstanding trading partners.