China suspends Irish beef imports two weeks after resuming

China has suspended imports of beef from the Republic of Ireland just two weeks after the market reopened.

The new ban is due to Bluetongue Virus (BTV), cases of which have now been detected in four herds in County Wexford.

Beef exports from the Republic of Ireland to China were previously suspended in 2024 after an atypical case of Bovine Spongiform Encelopathy (BSE), commonly known as mad cow disease, was found in a cow.

Under a protocol agreed with China, beef exports have to be suspended when any BSE case is discovered.

Bluetongue poses no risk to human health.