Egypt delays approval for Brazilian meat imports after spoiled meat scandal

Egypt has suspended the approval of imports from a Brazilian meat processing plant pending talks with the Brazilian embassy, following police raids and a wider corruption probe into meat production in the country.

“Only one of the Brazilian plants is currently exporting meat to Egypt. The government did not ban imports from it, but postponed the approval of import applications. Talks are ongoing with the embassy to ensure the meat is fit for consumption,” Agriculture Ministry spokesperson Hamed Abdel Dayem told Mada Masr.

Egyptian newspapers reported last week that the government suspended Brazilian meat products from 21 plants after the Brazilian government announced an investigation into reports health inspectors were taking bribes to relax import inspections and allow contaminated products onto the market.

Head of the Association for Importers of Frozen Products Sherif Ashour told Mada Masr that the Egyptian government’s decision to temporarily suspend import approvals is “only a precautionary measure.”

“The Brazilian probe was concerned with processed meat, and shouldn’t pose a problem for frozen beef imported from Brazil,” Ashour said, adding that any actual suspensions concerning Brazil’s largest meat-packing company JBS would pose a problem, as other firms do not have the production capacity to meet Egyptian demand.

JBS is the largest meat packing company in the world, with 40 plants in Brazil, making up 20 percent of global exports, amounting to US$14 billion in 2016. According to the Brazilian Beef Exporters Association, Brazil exported 1.4 million tons of beef, worth $5.5 billion, last year alone.

Egypt imported approximately 165,000 tons of fresh beef, worth $528 million, in 2016, according to the association’s statistics. Brazilian beef accounts for between 50 and 60 percent of all imported red meat, depending on the year, Ashour explained.

Following the Brazilian probe, Egyptian newspapers quoted Agriculture Ministry officials, saying large quantities of spoiled Brazilian meat entered the Egyptian market, and that parliament discussed the issue and demanded stricter governmental inspection standards for meat imports.

Reuters reported on Wednesday that China and Hong Kong, the top importers of Brazilian meats, have not taken a “definitive stance” on their imports.

Dozens of countries have placed restrictions on Brazilian meat imports, ranging from import suspensions from one or more of the plants involved in the investigation to suspending all meat imports from Brazil.

This crisis could affect 10 percent of Brazilian global meat exports, according to the Brazilian agriculture minister, who urged the government to take measures to lessen the impact of the scandal.