All Episodes

August 13, 2025 • 14 mins

Australia has just lifted its final bans on beef from the US, more than two decades after they were first imposed. The government says it’s the natural end of a long evaluation process but others see it as a bid to win favor from the US and avoid the worst of Donald Trump’s ongoing tariff war.

This week on the Bloomberg Australia Podcast, host Rebecca Jones speaks to agriculture reporter Ben Westcott about what really sparked the end to the beef ban, what more American meat in Australia means for local producers, and the outlook for the sector.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mark as Played
Transcript

Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
The federal government has agreed to lift bans on some
beef imports from the United States in the face of
looming trade tariffs from the Trump administration.

Speaker 2 (00:10):
Is Australia compromising its biosecurity to appease Donald Trump? The
Albanezy government has relaxed rules for US beef import How
do you like your steak rare, medium, rare or American?
Whatever your preference, You're about to get more choice. Australia
has lifted its long standing ban on US beef imports.

(00:31):
But how will this affect Australian farmers and one of
our nation's most iconic activities, the Great Australian Barbecue. Hello,
I'm Rebecca Jones and this is the Bloomberg Australia Podcast.
Do you remember Donald Trump's Liberation Day speech back in April. Well,
he gave a good shout out to Australian beef and
suddenly everyone who enjoys a good steak dinner was thinking, hmm,

(00:55):
I'd better stock up. So what has happened to Australia's
beef industry since that speech? And why now has the
Australian government agreed to buy US beef again? Help me
answer those questions. I'm delighted to welcome Bloomberg's Melbourne based
agriculture reporter Ben Wescott to the podcast. Ben, welcome back.

Speaker 1 (01:15):
Thanks for having me back.

Speaker 2 (01:16):
Ben. We know sitting here in Melbourne that most Aussie
beef that we eat, or rather I eat. You're a veggie,
I beg your pardon, comes mostly from cattle stations in Queensland,
New South Wales and the NT. Can we perhaps start
right at the beginning. I'm interested to know what role
the Australian beef industry plays in the local economy and
also in the global supply chain.

Speaker 1 (01:37):
Well, I mean, if you take a look around the world,
you know, we have these impressions of beef, massive beef
industries across the globe. You know in the US, you
know the ranchers out there, and then down in Brazil
which is costing obviously huge amounts to the Amazon rainforest.
But would it surprise me if to tell you that
Australia is the second largest beef exporder in the world.

(01:58):
It would, yeah, second largest. So it goes Brazil, who
are huge than us, and then it goes back and
forth between India and the US. But Australia has plays
a massive role in the global beef trade and that's
only getting more and more important now as global production
of the important food essential is starting to slump around
the world. So it's huge in Australia and the fact

(02:21):
that it's such a big part of the national identity,
it's such a big part of our diet. But also
we are a major and important supplier to the world,
and at this particular moment an incredibly important one.

Speaker 2 (02:33):
So when and why did Australia decide to ban US
beef and why is this coming to a head now?

Speaker 1 (02:40):
Been So, it was back in two thousand and three
during an outbreak of mad cow disease it's known in
the US, and that lasted that ban for about fifteen years.
It finished up in twenty nineteen. So that was when
we officially ended the ban on US meat coming into Australia. Now,
I know you're thinking immediately, you're thinking, wasn't it just

(03:02):
lifted Now, well, yes and no. So that was a
ban on meat that was born in the US, slaughtered
in the US and exported to Australia. But the band
that remained was a meat that was imported born in
Mexico or Canada then brought to the US and slaughtered
and then exported. That was the beef that was banned

(03:23):
from by Australia for a further six years until it
was lifted this year by the Albanese government.

Speaker 2 (03:29):
So others still biosecurity concerns around this imported beef. I mean,
you only have to go through any airport here in
Australia to realize, you know, we take these things pretty seriously.

Speaker 1 (03:39):
Australia is not a chill country when it comes to biosecurity.

Speaker 2 (03:42):
It's retually not.

Speaker 1 (03:43):
And that's a very good reason. Putting aside our enormous
and diverse ecosystems that knows the world has, we also
have such an important and massive agriculture industry that relies
on Australia being pest free from so many of these
various diseases and Paris so Albnyazy government insists that there
has been an extensive, I think they say decade long

(04:06):
study that has cleared us and subsequently Canadian and Mexican
beef has been perfectly okay to import into Australia and
that's why they're lifting the ban now. So it seems
unlikely they would have gone ahead with this that there
was a risk. However, there has been calls from people
like farmers and like the National Party in Canberra, who

(04:27):
are often supportive of rural industries, calling for a bit
of an inquiry to find out just what is the
science behind this and to make sure that the government
didn't move hastily on this in a bid to appease
the US president.

Speaker 2 (04:41):
Right. That's interesting because you know, on the face of it,
in amongst all of this tit for tapped tariffs that
we're seeing around the world, it does seem kind of
a coincidence that this is happening at around the same
time that we're seeing such actions coming out of the US.
I do want to ben is beef a sacrificial lamb,

(05:02):
sorry to take the heat off some other industries which
are important to Australia, like steel, pharmaceuticals, things that Donald
Trump seems quite focused on.

Speaker 1 (05:12):
Look, we don't know for sure, but I think there
is no doubt that when looking at the things which
Australia could compromise on, this was a relatively small matter
and we'll come back to it, I think later in
this podcast. But Australia does not import a lot of
beef from the US and so therefore agreeing to relax
these was something that could potentially create a few murmurs,

(05:36):
a few worries around biosecurity, but was not going to
really impact any industries in comparison to if the Albanese
government compromised on pharmaceuticals, which could cause drug prices to
spike across the country. So really, if they were looking
to appease Donald Trump, this was a place they could
do it. And certainly the US President was to use

(05:57):
an Australian word, chuffed when he heard about this. We
saw him turn out in his truth Social that Australia
had backdown and had agreed to import huge record numbers
of beef from America. So he seems thrilled by this,
and that might be the reaction the Albanezi government was
hoping for, and.

Speaker 2 (06:14):
Those were Donald Trump's words, of course, the back down.
So bottom line, Ben, let's just stick on the global
elements of this issue for now. What will this mean
for trade talks between the US going forward? Is opening
up our beef market going to make any real difference there,

(06:34):
even if it's just a perception of it.

Speaker 1 (06:36):
I think we'll have to see, really, because the big
you know, what Donald Trump is focused on at any
particular day, varies greatly from week to week, and we
saw that very soon after this deal with Australia was announced.
We did keep the ten percent ground tariffs in the
next announcement of tariff levels that the President made. However,

(07:00):
before that, he started to lash out at countries that
were taking advantage of the US pharmaceutical system and basically
saying that there would be up to a two hundred
percent tariff on drug prices. So it's a it's a
bit unpredictable as to whether or not this will appease him,
or whether or not this is just the end of
this particular battle and the war will rage on. We'll

(07:21):
have to wait and see how it goes from here.

Speaker 2 (07:23):
When we come back. We often hear about the hard
scrubble existence of Australian farmers, but what does the future
really look like for them? With more variety in the
supermarket meat section. This is the Bloomberg Australia Podcast. Welcome back.
I'm Rebecca Jones and you're listening to the Bloomberg Australia

(07:45):
Podcast Today. I'm joined by agriculture reporter Ben Westcott. So
then we know that farming in Australia is a boombust
kind of industry. How are cattle farmers going this year?
We've had a bit of rain lately.

Speaker 1 (07:58):
Well, it was funny after the most recent REALI positive
beef export numbers came down, I called around a few
cattle farmers, expecting to hear whooping and throwing of a
kubra's in the air, and instead there was a lot
of real stoicism about this. I mean, there's a feeling
that these numbers are good. People are very happy to
see it, but they're just coming out of quite a

(08:19):
nasty drought in recent years, or in the case of
some of our northern New South Wales farmers, really nasty flooding.
And so although these high beef prices around the world
mean that they can help get back on their feet,
they can restock, they can put some extra money into feed.
Hay prices are through the roof, so all those things
are great, there's no feeling that this is a really

(08:43):
long term situation, I mean a couple of years maybe
at most. And there's also a feeling that they have
to take the good time so while they can, because
they'll be more bad times later. So, as you mentioned,
boom busts and I think our farmers are quite stoic
in the face of that.

Speaker 2 (08:58):
Yeah, we recently had some fresh start to write on
the red meat trade between Australia and the US. Then,
have Donald Trump's comments made any impact on how much
is being shipped so far?

Speaker 1 (09:10):
Well, if they have, we haven't really seen it yet.
Australian exports to the US hit another record recently. We
exported about forty thousand tons that was in July to
the US and that was up more than ten percent
on the previous month. Now, in comparison the US from
the US to Australia, we imported about three hundred tons

(09:34):
different that was last year, but it hasn't shot up
since then, so you can see. They're the difference in
the amount that Australia exports to the US versus how
much we import from them. And that's just because we
have excess. You know, we have a huge industry and
a smaller population. The US has a huge appetite for
red meat, enormous and they are import from all around

(09:56):
the world. As I mentioned, Australia, Brazil, all over the place.
But we yeah, and we are very happy to say that,
particularly at a time when they have some real shortages
due to drought due to herd numbers slipping, and at
a time when places like Brazil and Canada, who they
normally rely on a single form production.

Speaker 2 (10:16):
So you know, on that, are there any hints that
US beef is going to be flooding our markets?

Speaker 1 (10:23):
Not at all. And I mean, even if you put
aside that four hundred tons figure I mentioned, the US
heard is going to take a long time to rebuild.
I mean, there's a reason why they are seeking out
Australian beef. Apart from obviously it's quality and it's the
large amounts that are out there. They're also seeking it
out because their own herd numbers are at a seventy

(10:44):
year low. They've had to slaughter huge numbers of their
stock to meet keep up with demand, and they haven't
been able to repopulate those quite yet. And so what
we're seeing is that it's going to take them at
least eighteen months two years to get their heard numbers
back up to a point where you know, prices are
starting to drop the US meat and that's that's still

(11:07):
a while away, so until then, Australian environments will be
making hay while it's unshine.

Speaker 2 (11:12):
I'm interested about the differences between the American offering versus
the Australian What are they they taste about the same.

Speaker 1 (11:20):
I mean, as you mentioned, I'm a vegetarian, so I
can't really comment.

Speaker 2 (11:24):
You're the wrong person to exact question.

Speaker 1 (11:26):
But I will say is that a lot of US
beef is corn fed, whereas Australian beef is grass fed
quite often, and it's a different consistency of meat. What
you often hear a lot is for US burgers, they
often need Australian meat to combine with their US meat
to make the paddies because the US meat is too fatty,

(11:47):
it's too it falls apart too easily. It doesn't make
for a very good burger paddy. If you combine it
with Australian beef, it holds it together. It makes for
that sort of shape that consistency people are used to,
so they're very, very reliant on Australian meat to make
one of their favorite foods over there.

Speaker 2 (12:05):
I appreciate that answer and understand it is all academic
for you. Finally, what is increased variety at the supermarket
going to mean for the cost of our barbecue essentials
here in Australia. Is more meat going to mean overall
more cheaper meat for Australia well, and.

Speaker 1 (12:24):
I always encourage people to check out the Bloomberg Barbecue Index,
which is a great indicator of where these prices are
up to. What people are amazed at around the world
is that you know, quite normally, what would happen if
there is huge demand for a product, prices will go up.
And that's what we're seeing around the world. Beef prices
are going up as there's more demand for beef, and

(12:46):
there's no more demand than anywhere than in Australia. Australia
is huge at the moment. That has not translated into
higher prices in Australian supermarkets. I mean certainly not compared
to the US or the EU, where prices are up
ten percent or something. In Australia it's up much lower
and much closer to the regular inflation number. And that's

(13:07):
just because supply is plentiful in Australia. And so although
you're going to though there's been a lot of noise
at the top. We've heard about this deal with US.
We've heard about US imports, we've heard about high beef prices.
When it comes to Australians in the actual supermarkets, prices
are going to be pretty relaxed for this. At least
lamb's incredibly expensive right now, but for beef it's going

(13:29):
to stay pretty low and I wouldn't really expect to
see US beef lighting Australian shelves anytime soon.

Speaker 2 (13:35):
Food for thought. Ben Wescott, thank you for joining me.

Speaker 1 (13:38):
Thanks beg.

Speaker 2 (13:39):
If you found today's conversation insideful, be sure to follow
the Bloomberg Australia Podcast wherever you listen, and check for
more on Australia's response to US tariffs and the ever
evolving trade situation, including the latest reporting from Benwestcoin on
Bloomberg dot com. This episode was recorded on the Traditional Lands.
If there were one Toree People. It was produced by

(14:00):
Paul Allen and edited by Ainsley Chandler and Chris Burke.
I'm Rebecca Jones and I'll see you next week.
Advertise With Us

Popular Podcasts

New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce

New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce

Football’s funniest family duo — Jason Kelce of the Philadelphia Eagles and Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs — team up to provide next-level access to life in the league as it unfolds. The two brothers and Super Bowl champions drop weekly insights about the weekly slate of games and share their INSIDE perspectives on trending NFL news and sports headlines. They also endlessly rag on each other as brothers do, chat the latest in pop culture and welcome some very popular and well-known friends to chat with them. Check out new episodes every Wednesday. Follow New Heights on the Wondery App, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to new episodes early and ad-free, and get exclusive content on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And join our new membership for a unique fan experience by going to the New Heights YouTube channel now!

Dateline NBC

Dateline NBC

Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com

On Purpose with Jay Shetty

On Purpose with Jay Shetty

I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!

Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc.