Brazil-Argentina resume positive relations on pork
Brazil exported 2,662 tons of pork to Argentina in July, which is just 5% less than in the same period in 2011. This helped boost total Brazilian pork exports by 22.54% to 44,242t in July, which is equal to July 2011 levels.
Pedro de Camargo Neto, president of the Brazilian Association of Producers and Exporters of Pork (ABIPECS), said: “The sales volume represents a good start. The bilateral agreement [between Argentina and Brazil] provides for a continuation of 2011 volumes. It would therefore be necessary to export more than we did in July, but we must remember that any resumption of trade requires time to reach a level of stability.”
Brazil’s pork exports to Argentina dropped by 77% in February of this year, when the Argentinian government introduced new import restrictions, forcing Brazilian exporters to apply for anticipated licences before entering the country. The restrictions hit Brazil’s pork industry hard and the governments have been locked in negotiation since, finally reaching a bilateral trade agreement at the end of July.
Restrictions in Russia remain in place, although Russia was still the biggest destination for Brazilian pork in July 2012. Camargo Neto said the industry was working hard to remove the Russian embargo on pork from three states – Rio Grande do Sul, Paraná and Mato Grosso – which has been in place for just over a year.
“We are waiting for the outcome of a recent mission where Russian veterinarians visited six pig plants in RS, SC and PR,” he said, adding that recent controversy related to the use of the drug ractopamine was not an issue, because Brazil has a segregated production protocol and can easily supply pork from pigs raised without the drug. “We continue with positive expectations,” he added.
Brazil’s total export volumes totalled 313,025t in July 2012, an increased of 3.32% the year before. Earnings were up 15.36% to $108.2m and the value of foreign pork sales was $795.62m, a 4.04% decrease on the same period in 2011.
