The EU’s ban on imports of Brazilian meat and other animal products from Thursday (3 September) could be short-lived if audits later this week confirm compliance with EU standards — but European officials cautioned against expecting an “early result”.
A European Commission spokesperson told reporters on Tuesday (1 September) that Brazil’s beef industry had not been able to guarantee compliance with the bloc’s rules on the use of antibiotics in its livestock industry.
Since the EU requires compliance across the livestock and dairy industries, the suspension will remain in place pending an audit which is due to be completed on Friday.
However, a commission spokesperson told reporters that authorities in Brazil were currently compiling an audit on phytosanitary and antimicrobial rules in the farming sector, though she warned that this did not necessarily mean an “early result”.
The spokesperson added that the commission had received guarantees that Brazil’s poultry industry was compliant but that “we need them for all animal products” and this was “not the case for beef at the moment.”
