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Expanding fresh meat market in the Caribbean

Much of the US meat exports to the Caribbean is associated with the hospitality and tourism industries.  But as Elizabeth Wunderlich, Caribbean representative for the US Meat Export Federation explains, one key to export growth is serving the local population.  “It’s been a slow evolution to help them retrain their butchers in how you use a knife instead of a bandsaw,” she says.  “But if we want to grow in the local culture, that’s what we have to do.  We have to provide fresh items that are retail friendly and a at a decent price point with a quality image that American beef and pork carry.”

Wunderlich says they’ve been working with small Eastern Caribbean markets.  Many think those small markets would be slow to adopt retail fresh meat sales, she says it’s been exciting the interest from those markets grow.  “The first that they transition in is of course beef,” she says.  “It’s harder with pork because of the shelf life.  But they’re working very hard to bring in chilled pork at a temperature that they can still merchandise and keep the quality up.”

Through November of last year, US beef and beef variety meat exports to the Caribbean totaled almost 18,000 metric tons valued at $111 million.  US pork and pork variety meat exports totaled 37,500 metric tons valued at $90.5 million.  And increase of 18 percent in volume and 14 percent in value over the previous year.