China has reportedly taken the decision to temporarily ban all beef imports from Brazil following the recent scandal.
The Brazilian Agriculture Ministry confirmed today that China has temporarily banned beef imports, according to international news agency Reuters.
The decision was taken following a police investigation that revealed health inspectors were bribed to overlook unsanitary conditions at several plants, it added.
Also Read: Brazilian beef and poultry industry plunged into major scandalIt has also been reported by Reuters that Chile has taken the decision to ban beef imports from Brazil.
At a press conference today, the head of Brazil’s ABPA Beef Producers Association, Francisco Turra, has said that the scandal has put the entire sector in a very difficult position.
A temporary ban on the sales of BRF (SA) chicken products in South Korea has also been announced today, in the aftermath of the scandal.
The European Commission has confirmed that any companies found to be involved in the scandal will be denied access to the European Union market.
Calls made to ban Brazilian beef at EU level
Meanwhile, a number of Irish farm organisations have called for an immediate ban on all Brazilian beef imports in light of the scandal.
Irish beef farmers need to be rewarded for consistently meeting high-quality standards, the IFA’s Chairman of the National Livestock Committee, Angus Woods, said.
“If a scandal, such as the one in Brazil, was revealed in the EU it would be a disgrace,” he said.
The EU has been warned time and time again about the risks of South American beef imports, the President of the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers’ Association, Patrick Kent, said.
“It is outrageous that the EU keeps giving a second chance to Brazil, even when the FVO (Food and Veterinary Office) reports have continuously shown major deficiencies in Brazilian beef practices.
A ban on Brazilian beef imports must remain in place until some degree of trust and confidence can be restored to the standards being applied in that nation’s beef sector, the President of the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association, John Comer, said.
The response has to be immediate and it has to mean a complete cessation on meat imports from Brazil.
The sheer scale of the scandal and the detrimental health risks it poses are what places this case above those of the past, he added.
