Beef consumption in the world and the European Union : recent evolutions and prospects

Abstract

This paper proposes a retrospective analysis of beefsupply and trade over the period 1991-2002, first at theworld level, second for the various Member States ofthe European Union. The latter is the second world producerafter the United States. European beef productiondec lined over the past decade while world supplyincreased by 1 % per year, mainly because of some developingcountries (Brazil and China). The European Union is the fourth world exporter after Australia, theUnited States and Brazil. Like supply, European beefexports declined over the past ten years, mainly because of sanitary problems. The Agricultural Agreement of the Uruguay Round was not really constraining since1994 on both the export and import dossier. European beef imports were globally stable since that date around 400 000 tonnes per year. The European beef production decrease since 1991 is for a large part dueto some Member States where milk production is important (Germany and countries of the North of Europe). The beef supply structure is different in each Member State according to weights of produced animals, privilege draces, breeding techniques and production systems.This production heterogeneity contributes tooffer to consumers a diversified choice of beef productsand explains, at least in part, why intra communitytrades are important, although in decline over the lastyears.