Under a newly implemented tariff rate quota (TRQ), U.S. bison now has duty-free access to the European Union. The TRQ is for 3,000 metric tons annually. As National Bison Association Executive Director Jim Matheson explains, U.S. bison has been gaining interest in the EU for decades, but its availability has always been limited there. The new TRQ aims to bridge that gap and offer new market opportunity for the U.S. bison industry.
Matheson shares that access for U.S. bison has been included in several recent trade negotiations, most notably with Australia and Taiwan. He adds that the U.S. bison industry has been seeking access to new foreign markets for many years, and those talks have recently gained momentum.
Compared to other industries, the bison industry is quite a novelty in the U.S., with the only other country known to raise bison being Canada. Despite its novelty, the U.S. bison industry is rapidly growing, with resilient producers, and the market opportunities abroad are immense due to the lack of domestic competition.
