The Department of Agriculture (DA) issued a temporary ban on imported beef products from Brazil.
Under Memorandum Order No. 23 series of 2023 dated March 22, the DA stopped the importation of live cattle, meat and meat products, bovine processed animal proteins and semen derived from cattle from the said country.
Based on data from the Bureau of Animal Industry, Brazil supplied the Philippines last year with a total of 69.71 million kg. of beef, equivalent to 37.45 percent of the 186.15 million kg. total beef imports in 2022.
Brazil was the largest provider of imported beef for the Philippines last year, followed by Australia with 47.26 million kg.
DA said the decision was made after an official report submitted by the chief veterinary officer of the Ministerio de Agricultura e Pecuaria – Porto Alegre, Brazil to the World Organization for Animal Health on Jan.18, 2023 indicated an outbreak of bovine spongiform encephalopathy in Maraba, Para affecting domestic cattle.
DA added the move is also a precaution as products affected with the mad cow disease are deemed to pose a risk to consumers due to their assumed link with the variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in humans.
The DA said the order also implements immediate suspension of the processing, evaluation of the application and issuance of sanitary and phytosanitary import clearance of said commodities from Brazil.
The order said all shipments coming from Brazil that are in transit, loaded or accepted unto port before the official communication to Brazilian authorities, will be allowed provided that the products were slaughtered or produced on or before December 18, 2022.
As of end-February, Brazil delivered 7.52 million kg of beef to the Philippines or 31 percent of the total 24.57 million kg worth of beef imports for the period.
