The announcement comes fresh off the back of a delegation of NFU and government representatives visiting the country to promote UK agriculture.
NFU President Tom Bradshaw and NFU Horticulture and Potatoes Board vice chair Stephen Shields visited a UK horticulture business in the state of New York that processes and sells beetroots.
Local supply wasn鈥檛 keeping up with demand and the delegation made the case to officials in Washington D.C. that importing products from England could boost sales and benefit both UK and US growers.
According to Defra, industry estimates this new access will be worth approximately 拢150,000 per year in increased exports.
Continued collaboration
NFU President Tom Bradshaw welcomed the news: 鈥淏eing able to access the US market, supplementing local production, will help to meet rising consumer demand for this healthy, nutritional crop, creating genuine growth opportunities for farmers and growers in the UK.
鈥淚 am especially delighted that this announcement comes days after we returned from the US where we were able to make the case for UK beetroot directly to government officials.鈥�
Tom said industry collaboration with government and the UK鈥檚 agri-food attach茅 based in Washington 鈥渉as been key to resolving this issue鈥�.
鈥�Long may the collaboration continue so British farmers and growers can expand into further markets and increase sales of great British food overseas.鈥�
NFU President Tom Bradshaw
鈥淚t shows the type of wins we鈥檙e able to achieve with the UK鈥檚 expanded network of agriculture attach茅s following a number of years of campaigning by the NFU for the creation of these positions.
鈥淟ong may the collaboration continue so British farmers and growers can expand into further markets and increase sales of great British food overseas.鈥�
The establishment of the network of agri-food attach茅s follows extensive NFU lobbying and is part of our ambition to grow UK agri-food exports by 30% to 拢33 billion by 2030.
The UK currently has a network of 16 attach茅s and the NFU continues to support the expansion of this network as a key tool to break down existing trade barriers and support export growth for British agriculture.
鈥楬istoric opportunity鈥�
NFU Horticulture and Potatoes Board vice chair Stephen Shields voiced his excitement at this 鈥渉istoric opportunity鈥� adding that the deal showed 鈥渏ust how important the trade visits the NFU conducts are and the opportunities they can deliver for businesses on the ground鈥�.
鈥淭his milestone not only enhances our market presence but also aligns with our ambition to grow the UK horticulture sector.鈥�
Minister for Food Security, Daniel Zeichner said the agreement marks a 鈥渟ignificant step forward for our beetroot farmers鈥�.
鈥淏ut this is only the start 鈥� over the coming weeks and months I will work tirelessly to back our British farmers and get our food exports moving again,鈥� he added.
Defra has said it will work closely with UK beetroot growers and relevant industry bodies to ensure a smooth transition into the US market.
