April 2, 2008

 

Brazil prepares to re-enter EU

 

Beef trade between the EU and Brazil may soon resume to normal volumes, said Jerry O'Callaghan, director of Global Beef Trading in Sao Paulo.

 

This week, five technical specialists from the EU will start to train Brazilian inspectors to implement the EU's auditing and traceability requirements.

 

If the EU is sending trainers, it means they want to get business back to reasonable volumes, said O'Callaghan.

 

The number of qualified exporters should increase to about 1,000 by the end of this year, O'Callaghan said.

 

The number of Brazil cattle ranchers that can sell to the EU was reduced last year due to animal health and traceability issues.

 

At present, less than 100 Brazilian ranches are qualified to export to the EU from an original list of about 2,600 ranches.

 

In 2007, the EU imported US$1 billion worth of fresh beef and US$500 million of processed or cooked meat. The ban only affected fresh meat.

 

Several Brazilian ranchers have begun to slaughter cattle to be shipped to the EU.

 

Local paper Estado has reported that Independencia has processed 429 cattle and expects to begin shipping the beef this week to the Netherlands.

 

Beef producer Mataboi, on the other hand, is preparing 1,000 head of cattle to be exported to the EU, said Sales Manager Joao Paulo Barros.

 

Even as some slaughterhouses are resuming business, production volume, however, remain low, said Fabiano Tito Rosa, a livestock analyst at Scot Consultoria.