India about to upend global beef trade

A recent ban on the sale of cattle for slaughter will limit access to growing markets, Bloomberg reports. India’s exports of beef have expanded rapidly in the last 10 years, making the country the world’s largest beef exporter by 2014 and accounting for 20 percent of trade in the commodity. The ban will undoubtedly have major ramifications for India’s meat-processing trade and will upset global beef trade by choking off supply. Indian water buffalo meat exports are not competitive with higher-quality U.S. beef exports, and although U.S. beef suppliers may be able to compete for “high-end” consumer segments in India’s developing-country markets, they likely cannot vie for the faster growing, low-cost segments served by India. Read more…