By Ana Mano
SAO PAULO (Reuters) – The Brazilian government on Tuesday confirmed a Japanese mission will visit the South American country to inspect its slaughterhouses, it said in a statement.
After a meeting involving the agriculture ministers of both countries, Brazil said “this step is essential for opening the Japanese market to Brazilian beef” and for expanding access to Brazilian pork exports into Japan.
The statement did not say when the mission will arrive in Brazil.
According to the statement, the ministers of both countries also signed a letter of intent aimed at strengthening cooperation in the recovery of degraded pastures in Brazil, the world’s biggest beef exporter.
Brazil also said Japan’s Agriculture Minister Taku Eto confirmed the approval of “the regionalization” of the International Health Certificate (CSI) for avian influenza by municipality.
This means that any export restrictions on chicken and egg products are limited to municipalities where outbreaks of avian influenza are detected, and no longer entire states.
Brazil has never had a case of avian influenza on commercial flocks.
However, in 2023, Brazil reported outbreaks of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) on non-commercial farms in states like Espirito Santo, Santa Catarina and Mato Grosso do Sul, triggering temporary and state-wide trading bans.
(Reporting by Ana Mano; Editing by Oliver Griffin)
