During Lula's trip to Japan, Brazil wants to secure a mission to open the beef market.
Japan, one of the world's largest meat import markets, is currently closed to Brazil due to sanitary restrictions, a situation the government wants to reverse.
Reuters - The Brazilian government will take advantage of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's (PT) visit to Japan at the end of the month to push for a sanitary mission to the country that could pave the way for opening the Japanese beef market to Brazil, the Secretary for Asia and the Pacific at Itamaraty said on Friday.
One of the world's largest meat import markets, Japan is currently closed to Brazil due to sanitary restrictions. With the country's declaration as a foot-and-mouth disease-free zone without vaccination progressing, the expectation of the Brazilian government and producers is to change this situation.
"Brazil has been improving its sanitary conditions for many years. Today it already has the status of a foot-and-mouth disease-free zone without vaccination, which should already enable us to access the Japanese market, but it depends on several procedures, including a sanitary risk assessment mission," stated Ambassador Eduardo Sabóia.
There is no expectation that the president will leave Japan with the opening of the market, but the assessment is that securing a health mission would already be a great result.
"That's what we're looking for right now so that there can be progress," he said.
According to data provided by the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Itamaraty), the Japanese beef import market is currently worth $4 billion annually, mostly from the United States and Australia. Brazil, which currently has 20% of the world's cattle herd and 25% of the global market, has zero access to Japanese beef imports.
During Lula's trip, the Brazilian government also intends to achieve greater market access for pork. Currently, only the state of Santa Catarina has sanitary authorization to export to the country. The Brazilian government also aims to secure a sanitary mission to expand the number of states and meat processing plants authorized.
Japan is currently Brazil's second-largest trading partner in Asia and the seventh-largest in the world, with imports mainly concentrated in corn, fresh chicken meat, green coffee, soybeans, and soybean meal, according to data from the Ministry of Agriculture.
