The UK government has firmly reassured farmers and consumers that hormone-treated beef from the United States will remain banned from entering the UK, despite a newly signed tariff deal designed to boost transatlantic beef trade.
The announcement comes amid rising public concern that the trade agreement, which allows up to 13,000 metric tonnes of US beef to enter the UK tariff-free, could pave the way for lower-standard meat products, particularly hormone-reared beef, to seep into the domestic market.
Since 1989, the UK—then part of the European Union—has enforced a strict ban on hormone-treated beef due to health concerns. That position has remained unchanged, and the government insists that the current deal will not undermine UK food safety or production standards.
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“The rules on food standards have not changed and they will not change as a result of the deal,” said Darren Jones, Chief Secretary to the Treasury. He confirmed that robust certification and inspection protocols would be in place at UK borders to prevent hormone-treated products from slipping through.
Border control agencies, he added, will be empowered to test meat imports for hormone residues, and any breach of UK food laws will result in penalties. “There will be consequences,” Jones stressed.
Despite these assurances, scepticism remains among British farmers and advocacy groups. Ian McCubbine, a beef farmer in Surrey, expressed concerns on BBC’s Today programme about the potential impact of increased US beef imports. “How do we know what they are putting in?” he asked. “We spent 50 years building an industry that is strong on environmental gain and animal welfare. The concern is that the US [beef imports] could be of lower quality.”
Liz Webster, founder of the campaign group Save British Farming, echoed similar sentiments in a post on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), writing: “In exchange for tariff relief on luxury cars, we’ve opened our doors to US beef and ethanol. But as our border checks are barely functioning, how we’ll enforce standards is anyone’s guess.”
In response to these fears, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) clarified that any US producers hoping to export beef to the UK must undergo rigorous certification and monitoring to demonstrate full compliance with UK food safety standards. Defra added that growth hormones—commonly used in the US to accelerate weight gain in cattle during the later stages of production—leave identifiable traces, which can be detected through testing.
Currently, the US exports around 1,000 tonnes of beef to the UK, but those shipments incur a 20% tariff. Under the new deal, that quota will rise significantly—up to 13,000 tonnes per year—without tariffs. In return, British beef producers will also be allowed to export up to 13,000 tonnes of beef to the US at a reduced tariff rate.
The deal is part of a broader agreement that also includes reduced tariffs on UK-manufactured cars entering the US and reciprocal access for US ethanol exports into the UK market.
While the deal has clear economic incentives, consumer and industry watchdogs are urging the public to remain vigilant. Many social media users have voiced intentions to support local agriculture by buying meat with the Red Tractor label, which certifies that products meet UK farming and animal welfare standards.
“I’ll be buying from my local butcher, who knows the farmers and where the beef comes from,” one user posted.
Though the government remains adamant that hormone-treated beef will not reach UK supermarket shelves, ongoing scrutiny from the farming community and the public highlights the high sensitivity surrounding food standards in any post-Brexit trade negotiations.
This article is originally published on: bbc
