The United Kingdom and the United States are making a new deal about food. This deal will let 13,000 tonnes of beef from America come to the UK. According to the DailyMail, this is happening right now in 2025, and many people have different feelings about it.
What Makes American Beef Different?
In America, about 80% of cows get special medicines called growth hormones. These medicines make cows grow bigger and faster. The United Kingdom has not allowed these hormone-treated cows since 1989 – that’s over 30 years ago!
American beef can also have other things that are different from UK beef:
- Something called “pink slime” – this is meat made from parts that usually get thrown away
- Lots of antibiotics – these are medicines that fight germs but can cause problems if used too much
- Different ways of keeping cows – some American cows live in big places called “feedlots” in Texas
- Different rules about what cows can eat and how they should be treated
Why Are Some People Worried?
Some doctors and scientists are concerned about hormone-treated beef. They worry it might cause:
Health problems like children starting puberty (body changes) too early. Some experts like Dr. Elisa Pineda from Imperial College London worry about increased cancer risk from these hormones.
Another big worry is about antibiotics. When we use too many antibiotics in animals, it can create “super germs” that our medicines can’t fight anymore.
What Do the Rules Say?
| United Kingdom Rules | United States Rules |
|---|---|
| No growth hormones allowed since 1981 | Growth hormones are okay and used a lot |
| No hormone-treated beef imports since 1989 | The FDA (food safety people) say hormones are safe |
| Strict rules about how animals should live | Different rules for animal care |
The UK government says it will not allow hormone-treated beef to enter the country. According to BBC News, they will use special checks at the border to test meat and make sure it follows UK rules.
What Do Experts Say?
Liz Webster, who started a group called Save British Farming, posted on X: “We’ve opened our doors to US beef and ethanol. But as our border checks are barely working. How we’ll enforce standards is anyone’s guess.”
Another expert named Mark Borthwick told: “It is not clear that the UK has the tools to check for animal products not made to the correct standards.”
Professor Chris Elliott from Queen’s University Belfast is an expert on food safety. He helps make sure our food is safe to eat.
How Do Countries Check the Beef?
The Food Standards Agency found steroids (a type of hormone) in some imported foods in 2022-2023. This shows that sometimes, foods that shouldn’t enter the country do get in.
To stop this, special people at the border do tests on the meat. They look for:
1. Papers that show where the beef came from and how it was raised
2. Signs of hormones or other not-allowed things in the meat
3. Proof that the beef follows all UK rules
What Might Happen Next?
Right now, American beef is only 0.05% of all beef in the UK. That’s a very tiny amount – like having just one American hamburger for every 2,000 British hamburgers!
But Brooke Rollins, who works with US agriculture, thinks this will grow “exponentially” – that means it could get much, much bigger very quickly.
Ian McCubbine, a farmer from Surrey, and other UK farmers worry this might make things harder for them.
Important Things to Remember About This Beef Deal:
- The UK and US are making a deal to bring more American beef to the UK
- Most American beef is raised differently than UK beef
- The UK says it won’t allow hormone-treated beef, but some people worry about how this will be checked
- Experts have different opinions about whether the beef is safe
- This could change how much American beef people in the UK eat
This beef deal shows how countries make rules about the food we eat. It also shows how important it is to know where our food comes from and how it was made.
