Commission Report Reinforces Brazilian Beef Concerns
17/04/08

A report published by the European Commission’s Food and Veterinary Office (FVO) following its inspection of Brazil’s beef industry has exposed ‘systemic failures in relation to holding registration, animal identification and movement controls.’

About 80% of all cattle in Brazil are based on tropics-friendly Nelore (zebu-type) genetics.

The report, which was drawn up following an FVO mission in November last year, was published last week and has led to renewed industry calls for an outright ban on Brazilian beef imports.

Delegates on the mission uncovered numerous failings at individual farm level including failure to report cases of Foot and Mouth Disease and major discrepancies between the Brazilian authorities’ own database and the reality on the ground. In one case, hundreds of cattle from one holding which had in fact been slaughtered were, according to the system, still alive.

Reacting to the report, NFU Scotland’s Vice-President Nigel Miller said:

“This document reports on a mission which took place before the Commission published its current list of 95 approved farms which can export beef to the EU.

“It is likely, therefore, that the mission’s conclusions finally made the Commission see sense and place its significant ban on the majority of Brazilian beef farmers. The report’s conclusions confirm that the EU's new controls are not only justified but should have been introduced many years ago.

“However, we question whether these controls are strict enough as the evidence for an outright ban continues to mount up.

“The report also destroys any pretence that regionalisation and disease control within Brazil are at all credible. The European Commission owes it to European producers to impose an outright ban on imports of Brazilian beef.”

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