'A culmination of intensive engagement': China drops ban on Irish beef  

The news follows Taoiseach Micheál Martin's trip to China last week during which President Xi Jinping told Mr Martin the ban would be reviewed.

China has agreed to drop its ban on Irish beef imports, the Government has confirmed.

The news follows Taoiseach Micheál Martin's trip to China last week during which President Xi Jinping told Mr Martin the ban would be reviewed.

In a joint statement, Mr Martin and Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Martin Heydon welcomed the reopening of the Chinese market for Irish beef following an announcement by the General Administration of Customs in China (GACC).

"The confirmation today that the Chinese market will reopen for Irish beef is a very important and positive development in our bilateral agri-food trade with China," Mr Martin said.

“This decision, which directly follows my positive engagements in Beijing with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang in recent days, reflects the confidence of the Chinese authorities in the robustness, transparency, and effectiveness of Ireland's animal health, traceability, and food safety systems.

“This reflects a culmination of intensive political, diplomatic and official engagement since the market was temporarily suspended in September 2024."

Taoiseach Micheál Martin meeting with Premier Li Qiang in Beijing last week.

Mr Heydon said that Ireland’s beef production is "underpinned by comprehensive surveillance, strict regulatory oversight, and internationally recognised standards, ensuring high levels of food safety and consumer protection".

"The reopening of the Chinese market further underlines the strength of these systems and Ireland’s long-standing commitment to safe, sustainable, and high-quality agri-food production. 

"I’d like to thank the Chinese officials who engage positively on an ongoing basis with our Beijing Embassy and with my Department.

“During the recent agri-food Trade Mission to China in October, my colleague Minister of State Timmy Dooley had the opportunity to highlight the importance of the market re-opening with ministerial counterparts in the GACC and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA).” 

Taoiseach Micheál Martin meeting with President Xi Jinping in Beijing, 5 January 2026

Speaking in Beijing last week, Mr Martin said that China's president had suggested a more "comprehensive framework" in trading with the European Union.

Talks on a comprehensive financial deal stalled in 2021, and China recently hit the EU with 42.7% of provisional tariffs on dairy products, including milk and cheese imported from the bloc.

That move was based on preliminary results from an investigation opened by China’s commerce ministry in August 2024, which reviewed subsidies provided by EU countries for their dairy and other farm products.

It was launched as part of tit-for-tat measures as the EU investigated Chinese subsidies on electric vehicles, and later imposed tariffs as high as 45.3% on Chinese-made EVs.