About Us

Our Story

Our history reaches back to 1895 when the first imports of frozen meat came from Australia, New Zealand and South America. Nowadays trade is in both chilled and frozen products from both the EU and further afield. IMTA is a UK Trade Association but, our members have expertise in international trade, importing and exporting to several continents around the world. However, the EU market is also an integral aspect of many of our members' businesses both on import and export. We represent importers and exporters of beef, lamb, pork and poultrymeat. Associate members bring expertise from across the supply chain from shipping and insurance to cold storage and logistics. IMTA is one of the most respected trade associations in the UK food sector today and has a rich history spanning over 130 years. We are tapped into a series of networks, in the UK, in the EU, and beyond. At the EU level, IMTA is a member of the European Livestock and Meat Trading Union (UECBV), and at a global level, is a member of the International Meat Secretariat (IMS). Representing our members' views to policymakers is at the heart of what we do.

Our Mission Statement

IMTA is a UK trade association, representing predominantly UK companies importing and exporting meat. Our goal is the facilitation of the trade in meat, ensuring UK consumer choice, food security and carcass balance through import and export. IMTA provides leading trade expertise on UK trade policy, including on customs, tariffs, quotas, rules of origin, WTO, trade agreements, SPS conditions and market access.

Our Members

Our members are at the heart of the association, they steer the direction and contribute invaluable knowledge, insight and passion into everything IMTA does. Our 65 trading members import, export, trade and distribute beef, pigmeat, poultrymeat and sheep meat. Our UK-based members play a key role in providing consumer choice and balancing the carcase for British producers.

IMTA also has more than 20 associate and affiliate members, they are vitally important to the organisation as they present the views of the wider industries around the meat trading sector. IMTA associate and affiliate members carry out activities such as customs clearance, transport or insurance on which our members rely.

IMTA’s UK-based members account for a combined turnover of more than four billion pounds, representing direct employment of over 15,000 people in the UK and indirectly supporting employment in the wider UK economy in meat production, manufacturing, retail and food service.

What We Do

We keep our members informed of legislative, policy and trade developments affecting their business via our daily news bulletin and resources on the website, including meeting reports and market intelligence reports. Members are encouraged to contact us with any queries or troubleshooting and we will do our utmost to help.

IMTA members are kept fully informed of trade and regulatory developments affecting their businesses via our daily news bulletin and resources on the website. We provide a comprehensive legislative and policy monitoring service for our members, as well as answer queries and troubleshoot issues that arise.

In the UK, we have near daily contact with departments across Whitehall (Defra, HMRC, Department for Business and Trade & Cabinet Office) as well as the Rural Payments Agency, Food Standards Agency, and the Animal and Plant Health Agency. Over the many years IMTA has been representing the interests of the sector, strong working relationships have been developed both with foreign embassies in the UK and the UK’s embassies abroad. We work closely with other trade associations in the sector.