BRASÍLIA: Several news sources reported last week that two Brazilian meat companies have sent fresh beef to the United States. According to Reuters News Service, Brazilian meatpacker Marfrig Global Foods SA announced in mid September that it had shipped its first cargo of fresh beef to the United States. JBS SA whose US branch, JBS is one of the largest meatpackers in this country, sent a container of beef to the United States the next day, said the Reuters story.
The United States had banned fresh beef from Brazil since 1999 until August 1 of this year when USDA announced that its Food Safety and Inspection Service had approved a rule to allow Brazil to ship 64,800 tonnes of fresh beef per year to the U.S. duty free. In return, the U.S. can export beef and beef products to that country. A JBS spokesman said in the Reuters story that even when the duty-free limit is reached, the company will still profit from beef exports to the United States.
“When the quota is over, deals will still be made on a regular basis,” said Gularte in the story. He then explained that prices might need to be adjusted to account for the 26.4 percent tax to be charged. “The official, who is in charge of meatpacker JBS SA’s division for the trade bloc formed by Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela, believes the United States will be among the five key markets for Brazilian fresh beef as soon as 2017,” the story reported.
USDA FSIS did not confirm or deny the arrival of Brazilian fresh beef. “Upon arrival, imported meat, poultry, and processed egg products are required to undergo FSIS re-inspection at U.S. ports-of-entry to check for proper certification, labeling, transportation damage, and general condition. “Selected shipments will be subject to additional re-inspection procedures, including examinations for product defects and laboratory analyses to detect harmful chemical residues or pathogen testing appropriate for the products.
“FSIS requires importers to submit an application for inspection, which includes information about the product establishment destination and the estimated date that the product will be presented. FSIS tracks these shipments in our Public Health Information System (PHIS) to ensure shipments are presented for required inspection.”
USDA Public Affairs Specialist Julie Schwartz said a Freedom of Information Act request is required to track specific products in the PHIS system. JBS, Minerva, and Marfrig are on the list of eligible plants certified to export meat from Brazil to the United States, Schwartz said. According to USDA, Brazil is home to almost three times as many cattle as the United States, and has about two-thirds the number of people as the U.S. The three main cattle organizations in the United States, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, Ranchers-Cattlemen Action Legal Fund-United Stockgrowers of America and the United States Cattlemen’s Association have all voiced opposition to the rule to allow fresh beef from Brazil, citing serious concern over Foot and Mouth Disease.
USDA FSIS and the World Organization for Animal Health consider much of Brazil “Foot and Mouth Disease free with vaccination.” Some regions in Brazil are not FMD free. While USDA FSIS reported that on site visits concluded that Brazil’s meat safety protocols are equivalent to those in this country, cattlemen are skeptical. Bryan Hanson, the president of R-CALF USA and co-owner of Ft. Pierre Livestock Auction worries that even if some Brazilian regions have mitigated FMD problems, cattle will travel between territories and bring disease with them. “There are no checkpoints between Brazilian states, it is as simple as moving between North Dakota and South Dakota. If the market is better in an FMD-free region or state, I guarantee cattle will be moving there to sell.”
