OK, let’s kill this beast.
This morning I woke to a smoggy Beijing day, beeping car horns and all the trimmings.
I headed off to a meeting with Meat and Livestock Australia, followed by Austrade at the Australian Embassy then the Chinese Sheepmeat Association.  The basic message was that China has banned grazing livestock from much of it’s grasslands for environmental reasons, livestock are now raised in intensive conditions which has decreased the profitability of the enterprise. Over 98% of Chinese farmers have less than 100 head of sheep and goats. Goat meat is the preferred meat of China, increasingly pork and chicken are seen as less healthy and clean than grass fed animals. China is only just supplying demand and does import a little goatmeat from Australia and New Zealand. Australia has to pay a 12% tariff as well as a 13% tax which means that our goat meat is quite expensive here. There is no quality control on the Chinese product and the general consensus is that there is room in China for a imported premium quality goatmeat for the high end restaurant trade.
Tonight I saw an acrobatic performance that was really spectacular, amazing speed and agility would make them very handy in the goat yards at home, not to mention the 10 girls on one bicycle. Finished off with a meal of Peking Duck and a walk through the streets. It’s quite hot and humid and the men are out sitting on the streets playing mah jong and talking. Had a bit of a moment with an ATM when I couldn’t read the instructions and wondered how I would get my card back but sorted it out in the end.
30 hour train trip in front of me on board the Trans Siberian Express, can’t wait.