São Paulo – Brazilian and Saudi delegates are attending the meeting of the Brazil-Saudi Arabia Joint Commission next Tuesday (14th) in Brasília. The Saudi delegation will comprise two professionals from the Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA) who will also convene with personnel from the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture, from the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, and from industry, as well as attend beef processing plants. The Saudis travelling to Brazil are the SFDA International Cooperation Department director Abdulrahman Al Ghurairi and the head of the foreign establishments inspection section of the SFDA Food Department, Abdullah Al Debasi.
Topics in the joint commission agenda include establishing a business council for Brazilians and Saudis, and political issues. The Arab Chamber will present its project for online certification of origin and document legalization for the exporting of Brazilian products to the Gulf country. The last meeting of the joint commission, whose purpose is to discuss issues that interest both countries, took place in 1981.
Prior to the meeting, on Wednesday (8th), the Saudis should visit a farm in Guaraçaí and a cattle slaughter plant in Andradina, both in the state of São Paulo. On Thursday (9th), a meeting is scheduled at Laboratório Nacional Agropecuário (Lanagro) in Minas Gerais. On Friday (10th), the Saudi technicians will attend a luncheon at the invitation of the Arab Chamber, in São Paulo.
The Arab Chamber’s CEO, Michel Alaby, said the SFDA’s visit could help bring the Saudi embargo on Brazilian beef to an end. “This is a prelude that help lift the ban on Brazilian beef,” Alaby said.
Saudi Arabia embargoed purchases of beef from Brazil following the Brazilian federal government’s announcement, in November 2012, that an animal carrying bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), aka mad cow disease, died in 2010, although it did not develop the disease. Several countries stopped buying Brazilian beef and beef products as a result. Many resumed importing months later, but Saudi Arabia hasn’t yet. Other Gulf countries, which abide by SFDA rulings, also have bans in place: Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar.
In a statement sent to ANBA, the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture said the SFDA expressed interest in visiting Brazilian beef production, slaughter and certification facilities, and in meeting with Brazilian authorities. “This visit precedes the SFDA’s inspection mission, which is the final stage before the Saudi market is reopened. We are expecting to show the high standards in veterinary control and livestock production in Brazil,” the Ministry’s statement reads. A delegation from the SFDA should travel to Brazil after the joint commission in order to assess the sanitary conditions of Brazilian cattle, and then lift the embargo.
Saudi Arabia is Brazil’s leading Arab trade partner. Last year, it was the second leading buyer of Brazilian products, after the United Arab Emirates. Saudi Arabia imported US$ 2.5 billion from Brazil. It was the top Arab exporter to Brazil, at US$ 3.2 billion. Brazil exports mostly poultry, sugar, cereals, and beef (before the ban) to Saudi, and imports mostly oil and oil products.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
