Hong Kong also mainly exports frozen beef (CN 0202) from Europe. The top exporters of frozen beef among EU countries in 2024 are Ireland (with exports of 3,891 tonnes), France (364 tonnes), Poland (353 tonnes) and the Netherlands (178 tonnes). The figures below show the scale of exports from EU countries between 2020 and 2024 in kilograms.
Table 1. Export from EU countries (CN 0202)1
| Country | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Austria | 41,288 | 46,318 | 19,435 | 20,580 | 19,114 |
| Belgium | 242,750 | 74,015 | 92,601 | 27,576 | 29,100 |
| Croatia | – | 6,764 | – | – | |
| Denmark | 296,128 | 97,286 | 80,568 | 75,253 | 21,645 |
| Finland | 0,013 | – | – | – | |
| France | 814,976 | 649,090 | 65,556 | 489,469 | 364,638 |
| Germany | 1,291,410 | 559,987 | 0,014 | 61,262 | 151,557 |
| Greece | 2,276 | – | – | 0,066 | |
| Irleland | 7,521,910 | 8,467,008 | 1,710,290 | 3,732,885 | 3,891,346 |
| Italy | 2,282,187 | 911,620 | 49,814 | 15,612 | 18,909 |
| Netherlands | 1,661,448 | 1,667,034 | 304,745 | 323,450 | 178,626 |
| Poland | 4,290,950 | 3,761,456 | 659,435 | 767,708 | 352,945 |
| Portugal | 0,049 | 165,006 | 51,950 | 48,573 | 76,098 |
| Slovenia | 42,949 | – | – | 25,012 | |
| Spain | 1,576,117 | 592,021 | 78,403 | 180,184 | 135,994 |
| Sweden | 25,000 | 33,322 | – | – | |
| Total | 20,089,451 | 17,030,927 | 3,112,811 | 5,767,630 | 5,239,972 |
European establishments eligible to export beef to Hong Kong must first obtain approval for trade within the EU without the need for separate approval for Asian markets. Furthermore, if a country is an exporting country, it must use raw materials (i.e., animals and meat) from only Member States eligible for export to the Hong Kong market. The Hong Kong Food Safety Centre has specified a list of these countries.
Greece and Finland are exceptions to this rule, as the approval from the Hong Kong authorities only applies to establishments and not to the entire territory of these countries.
Beef shipments destined for Hong Kong must be transported under appropriate refrigeration conditions. Chilled meat should be transported at a temperature between 0°C and 4°C, while frozen meat should be kept at a temperature inside the block of at least -18°C.
These requirements apply to each batch of meat, regardless of the quantity.
We encourage you to download the information brochure detailing the qualities of European beef.
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