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U.S. pork faces challenge from Argentina province
Story Date: 4/25/2018
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Source: POLITICO'S MORNING AGRICULTURE, 4/24/18
Argentina will soon be receiving its first shipments of U.S. pork in 26 years after wrapping up technical talks earlier this month - but one Argentine province has refused to accept the deal. The government of La Pampa, one of the smallest of Argentina's 23 provinces, signed a law blocking U.S. pork imports - an effort to prioritize local pork production. The law "will prevent the entry of pork from the United States, a country that is not free of the disease PRRS and that due to measures implemented by the national government was authorized, in detriment to the regional economies of the country," La Pampa's government said in a statement last week.
Bigger picture: The United States is the world's top pork exporter, and the agreement opens up a potential $10 million market for pork producers, "with significant growth opportunities possible in subsequent years," USDA and USTR said in a joint statement.
La Pampa, meanwhile, represents a small number of Argentines, so it's unlikely to have a significant impact. However, it shows backlash to Argentine President Mauricio Macri's move to accept U.S. pork imports after they were barred for years over animal health concerns.
Pork producers push back: Jim Monroe, senior communications director for the National Pork Producers Council, rejected La Pampa's claims, saying the U.S. produces the safest and highest-quality pork available in the world.
"Not only does this restriction violate the spirit of the trade agreement established between the U.S. and Argentina, but it lacks any grounding in scientific fact," Monroe told Morning Ag.
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