The Mexican government has authorized imports of pork from Brazil. Initially, purchases will be made from plants in Santa Catarina, the first Brazilian state recognized as a foot-and-mouth disease-free zone without vaccination by the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE).
According to Luis Rua, director of the Brazilian Association of Animal Protein (ABPA), however, the entity will focus its efforts on expanding the qualification for plants in new areas recognized as free of foot-and-mouth disease without vaccination, such as Rio Grande do Sul and Paraná.
The authorization is part of the measures taken by the country to control inflation and the actions of the Brazilian government to open new markets for domestic products.
The news was celebrated by the president of ABPA, Ricardo Santin, who believes that the authorization is one of the most important achievements for Brazil’s animal protein export chain. On a note Mr. Santin said “Mexico is, historically, one of the three main destinations for world pork exports, with volumes close to 1 million tons.”
The Mexican government also released the import of beef from Argentina, after eight years of negotiations between the two countries.In a statement, the Argentinian government said that the Mexican agricultural sanitation authority had allowed 22 slaughterhouses to export beef products.