Lourenço Melo
Reporter - Agência Brasil

Brasília - The government of Israel notified the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Supply (MAPA) that it is willing to resume Brazilian beef imports, provided the meat does not come from the states of Mato Grosso do Sul, Paraná, or São Paulo. 48 countries currently maintain some kind of embargo on imports of Brazilian meat. Israel is the first country to lift its restrictions, albeit partially.

The news was transmitted by Matias Sacla, representative to the Americas for the Veterinary and Animal Health Services of the Israeli Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. In a letter addressed to the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture, Israel said its decision was "based on the latest information on the situation of the foci of hoof and mouth disease in Brazil." According to the communication, Israel wants to continue buying deboned meats and viscera from Brazil.

According to the MAPA, since the discovery of the disease in the municipality of Eldorado, near the Brazilian border with Paraguay, "all the sanitary measures recommended by the World Organization of Animal Health (OIE) to erradicate it have been adopted."

Brazil's average daily meat exports in the first three weeks of November amounted to US$ 31.164 million, as against US$ 35.593 million in October and US$ 26.833 million in November, 2004.

The Ministry of Development, Industry, and Foreign Trade explains that, despite the restrictions on meat imports, sales volume continues on a higher level than at any time last year. The reason is the substantial rise in pork and poultry exports. According to the Ministry, nearly a third of Brazil's foreign buyers suspended purchases of Brazilian beef after the outbreak of hoof and mouth disease in some herds in Mato Grosso do Sul.

Translation: David Silberstein