Beets from the United Kingdom will soon make their entrance into the U.S. market, an export opportunity expected to generate over $200,000 a year for British farmers.
USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service cleared the way for U.K. table beets to be sold in the U.S. on Sept. 27 after finding it unlikely they would spread unwanted plant pests.
British trade officials see potential to export 20 metric tons of the product to the U.S. each year, which pales in comparison to the roughly 64,800 metric tons the U.S. brings in annually from other parts of the world, according to an economic analysis by APHIS.
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Still, the new market opportunity is big for British farmers, who have seen lower demand for beets after their 2020 withdrawal from the European Union, according to the British Broadcasting Corporation. The British Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, in a press release Saturday, called U.S. beet market access "a springboard to grow the economy and expand U.K. trade relationships post-Brexit."
"This milestone marks a significant step forward for our beetroot farmers," British Agriculture and Food Minister Daniel Zeichner said in the release.
APHIS doesn't believe giving U.K. beet growers' access to the U.S. market will have much effect on U.S. production of the crop, which spans less than 10,000 acres, mostly in Wisconsin, New York and Oregon. The beets U.S. growers produce are typically canned, according to APHIS' analysis.
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