Erbil, Iraq – Brazilian beef exporting companies are still waiting for the reopening of the Iraqi market, which ceased to import from Brazil in December last year, following the Brazilian government’s announcement that the mad cow disease-causing agent was detected in an animal in the state of Paraná, which died in 2010 without, however, having developed the condition.
“We were expecting that [the market] would be open by now,” said the chairman of the Association of Brazilian Beef Exporters (Abiec), Antônio Jorge Camardelli. He is attending the Erbil International Fair, in Northern Iraq, which opened this Monday (23rd).
According to him, there are no reasons for the embargo to continue, since the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) has declared, following the episode, that the likelihood of a case of bovine spongiform encephalopathy in Brazil remains “insignificant,” i.e. Brazilian beef poses no risk to consumers.
Camardelli said a delegation of Iraqi government officials travelled to Brazil for an inspection in the first half this year, and the outcome was positive. He added that Iraqis want to have a new mission in order to visit laboratories and trade experiences with Brazilian technicians.
“The Brazilian government has extended the invitation and we are drafting a technical cooperation agreement,” he said. More than check for meat quality, Iraq wants to acquire knowledge in animal sanitation.
There is not set date for the mission yet, but to Brazilian exporters “the sooner the better.” “We regard Iraq as a strategic market, that is why we have come to the fair,” said the executive. Iraq is seen as strategic not only due to local demand, but also for the nearness with Iran and Turkey. The opening means a facilitation of product flow in the region. Next Thursday (25th), Abiec will host a barbecue for businessmen and government officials in Erbil.
Promise
“We have a lot of interested [importers] here, but Iraq remains locked down,” said Diogo Oliveira, the commercial manager for trading company West Food, which sells various foodstuffs, including beef. “Once beef is cleared, we will be very successful here, just as we are in Iran,” he said, noting that the company has shipped out 4,000 tonnes to Iran in 2013. “And by the end of the year we will have shipped from 6,000 to 7,000 tonnes,” he added.
In the meantime, the company offers other items at the Erbil Fair. “We are trying to sell coffee, which they consume a lot of,” said Oliveira.
In addition to Abiec and West Food, the Brazilian stand at the fair features the meat packing company Marfrig and the Federation of Muslim Associations in Brazil (Fambras), which provides bovine halal slaughter certification – attesting that the animals have been slaughtered in accordance with Islamic tradition.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
