American Bison Meat Tariff Eliminated Under New EU Trade Deal

August 25, 2025

The National Bison Association (NBA) was pleased to learn this week that the forthcoming trade agreement with the European Union (EU) includes preferential access for American bison meat. The NBA has long lobbied the federal government to ease duties on imported bison into the EU, where it enjoys strong consumer demand for this premium, American animal protein.

The White House, in its announcement of the details of the recent trade deal, specifically states, “The European Union intends to eliminate tariffs on all U.S. industrial goods and to provide preferential market access for a wide range of U.S. seafood and agricultural goods, including tree nuts, dairy products, fresh and processed fruits and vegetables, processed foods, planting seeds, soybean oil, and pork and bison meat.”

The NBA has requested a duty-free arrangement for bison meat imports into the EU to meet existing consumer demand from Europeans, who appreciate sustainably raised food products that have cultural significance and are delicious, which bison offers in abundance. Further, bison is exclusively raised by responsible stewards in the U.S. and Canada, posing no competition to EU farmers and ranchers.

“This trade agreement with the EU is a welcome sign that as our members raise more bison across North America, there is growing global demand and appreciation for its end products, which ultimately is restoring the bison species to its native landscape," said NBA Executive Director Jim Matheson.

The agreement also puts the U.S. on equal footing with Canada, which for years has enjoyed duty-free access to the EU with its bison products, while American marketers faced a 20% tariff on the same imports. This will allow for a more robust supply of bison for European consumers to enjoy, while collectively growing the bison industry’s market share.

Source: National Bison Association