December 6, 2007

US counters Mexican efforts to curb pork imports

The US Meat Export Federation (USMEF) said it would counter the efforts of Mexican pork producers who are working to impede US pork imports.

Mexican pork producers recently claimed they are hurt by a flood of pork imports entering the country.

The National Pork Producers Organization in Mexico has just been formed and is seeking the lower house of the Mexican congress to pass a resolution to restrict imports.

The resolution has no force of law, but was signed by the leaders of the three principal political parties in Mexico.

The government has been called by Mexican producers to use a constitutional mechanism to restrict imports, tighten import inspections at the border and reject pork that is more than 30 days past slaughter.

In the first half of 2007, average wholesale prices for pork carcasses in Mexico City were down 30 percent from 2006.

However, according to USMEF, the lower prices resulted from increased hog marketing due to high feed prices, not from imports.

USMEF said it would continue to meet with key members of the Mexican Congress and would provide important economic information to the Secretariat of Economy and to Mexican industry partners.