Australian consumers unlikely to see US beef on supermarket shelves as giants support local farmers

Australia’s major supermarkets and fast food chains have no plans to stock beef from Canada or Mexico and slaughtered in the US, despite the Albanese Government lifting a long-standing import ban last month.

The Federal Government last month controversially ended a 22-year-old ban on beef from Canadian and Mexican cattle slaughtered in the United States, declaring the move followed a decade-long scientific review and posed no risk to food safety.

But leading retailers — including Woolworths, Coles, Aldi and McDonald’s — have confirmed they will continue sourcing 100 per cent of their beef from Australian producers, with no intention of selling imported meat.

A Woolworths spokesperson said the supermarket sourced about seven per cent of the nation’s total beef production and remained committed to its local-first approach.

“We apply an Australian-first approach, and 100 per cent of our fresh red meat is sourced directly from Australian farmers, with whom we have long-standing relationships,” he said.

“We have no plans to change that approach.”

A Coles spokeswoman echoed Woolworths commitment to provide local beef, and said there would be no changes to its meat supply or products made available to customers.

“At Coles, we continue to partner with top beef producers across Australia to bring our customers the high-quality, 100 per cent Australian-sourced Coles brand fresh beef that they enjoy today,” she said.

An Aldi spokeswoman also confirmed the chain has no plans to change its position in sourcing meat from Australian farmers.

American fast-food giant McDonald’s has also thrown its support behind local beef producers — choosing to shun US beef for its burgers.

Federal Agriculture Minister Julie Collins announced the removal of the ban in July on the basis of a “rigorous” and decade-long review based on science, and declared any food coming into Australia was “safe”.

The Nationals leader David Littleproud called for an independent review of the Federal Government’s decision to lift the beef ban, and said he was concerned biosecurity standards were being “sacrificed” for a meeting with US President Donald Trump.

But the call for an independent inquiry into the import decision was knocked back in the Senate last week.

Myalup beef producer and WAFarmers livestock president Geoff Pearson also questioned lifting of the beef ban and said he would like to see the detail behind the Federal Government’s move.

“The biggest concern is that they preach the fact that the science has been done and there’s no biosecurity risk to industry,” he said.

Mr Pearson said he was not concerned with the importation of US beef affecting the price of local beef, with Australia exporting more beef into the US than there is US product coming into Australia.

“The effect for the bottom line of Australian producers is fairly limited,” he said.

The ban lift came just before Australia was hit with a 10 per cent tariff on exports to the US — the lowest tier under a tariff schedule introduced during Donald Trump’s presidency.