Reuters – Unreasonable animal health risk assessments continue to hamper global meat trade, according to Joao Sampaio, the director of institutional affairs at Brazilian beef processor Minerva.
In statements July 26, Sampaio cited Turkey, which refuses to import Brazilian beef due to foot-and-mouth disease worries, but does buy live cattle from the country, “…which is even riskier.”
Turkey would rather import live cattle and slaughter domestically because of religious factors, according to Sampaio.
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In 2018, the World Organization for Animal Health declared Brazil free of foot-and-mouth disease with vaccination.
This year, Brazil’s agriculture ministry decided to suspend vaccination against the disease in six states from November 2022, according to state-run news agency Agencia Brasil.
The suspension is linked to efforts to expand foot-and-mouth disease-free zones without vaccination.
Brazil has set a goal for the country to be totally free of the disease without vaccination by 2026.
