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Farmers risk losing market share to imports without significant growth in beef herd, NBA says

NBA and SBA chief executive Neil Shand said Scottish farmers must grow the Scottish beef herd to 79,000 by 2030 to meet market demand alone

Chris Brayford
clock • 2 min read
Neil Shand, chief executive at the National Beef Association and Scottish Beef Association, said: "We import beef currently from a herd that is bigger than Scotland's. 79,000 cows are needed in Scotland alone by 2030, or we will lose market share to imports."
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Neil Shand, chief executive at the National Beef Association and Scottish Beef Association, said: "We import beef currently from a herd that is bigger than Scotland's. 79,000 cows are needed in Scotland alone by 2030, or we will lose market share to imports."

Food producers have been warned they could no longer be in control of the UK's market share of beef in four years time without making a conscientious effort to grow the national beef herd by nearly 80,000....

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Farmers risk losing market share to imports without significant growth in beef herd, NBA says

Farmers risk losing market share to imports without significant growth in beef herd, NBA says

NBA and SBA chief executive Neil Shand said Scottish farmers must grow the Scottish beef herd to 79,000 by 2030 to meet market demand alone

Chris Brayford
clock 25 February 2026 • 2 min read