Vietnam rids age restrictions on U.S. beef imports

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) recently announced that Vietnam has removed all cattle-age restrictions for imports of beef from the United States, according to Drovers CattleNetwork.

Previously, U.S. beef for export to Vietnam had to come from cattle slaughtered at less than 30 months of age, verified through the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) Export Verification (EV) program.

Vietnam is a relatively small, but growing market for U.S. beef. The removal of the age restrictions should encourage continued growth, particularly for lower-priced beef products.

In 2014, U.S beef exports to Vietnam totaled 2,869 metric tons valued at $22.1 million, according to the USMEF.