January 15, 2007

 

USDA proposes re-opening border to pork from Mexico

 

 

US food companies may soon be able to resume sending their pork supplies to Mexico for processing, if USDA proposals are approved.

 

The USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has issued a proposal to allow uncooked pork and pork products from designated regions in Mexico.

 

Labour costs in pork processing plants are nine times lower in Mexico than the US.

 

APHIS said US shipments could be sent to regions where classical swine fever (CSF) is considered to exist but is making the proposal a public consultation

 

US companies have been using plants in Mexico for slaughtering and processing their pork supplies since 1994, thanks to NAFTA (North America Free Trade Agreement). The processed pork is then re-imported back into the US for use by the companies or for distribution.

 

However, outbreaks of classical swine fever (CSF) in Mexico has put a stop to the practice. As the situation improved in 2006, the USDA declared many regions of Mexico low or free of risk.

 

Currently, the US only allows Mexican pork imports if they had been cooked or cured.

 

Under the proposal, uncooked pork and pork products sent to CSF-affected regions for processing and then shipped to the US were to be in closed containers sealed with serially numbered seals.

 

The shipments would have to be accompanied by a certificate that specifies the products' region of origin, the slaughtering plant, the place from where the products were shipped, along with the name of the importer.

 

Nicholas Giordano, international trade counsel to the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) said that the organisation supports lifting the current restrictions as it sees no scientific basis to oppose the rule.

 

CSF was rooted out in the US in 1978 after a 16-year effort by the industry and state and federal governments.

 

Mexico has made efforts to eradicate swine diseases and upgrade their slaughter and processing facilities to meet US standards, according to a 2006 report by Iowa State University.

 

In 2005, there were 160 pork slaughter plants in Mexico that met those standards, more than triple the number reported in 1999, the researchers stated.