South Africa allows import of US meat products

The South African Government has allowed the sale of US beef, pork and poultry products, ending a 15-year trade dispute.

The trade dispute was resolved following months of discussion.

The first import of US poultry products received at the Port of Durban in South Africa, was cleared by the Port Health Authorities.

With the shipment, imported frozen chicken legs will be available before the deadline of 15 March set by US President Obama.

The end of the trade dispute would bolster annual exports of US poultry, beef and pork products by $160m, a move that would support thousands of jobs in the states of Georgia and Delaware.

Reuters quoted US Trade Representative Michael Froman as saying to reporters: “We’re comfortable that South Africa has met the agreed-upon benchmarks.

“We’re going to continue to monitor the situation as poultry, beef and pork make their way into the market. The president will make a determination on the revocation of his suspension order. We expect that decision to be forthcoming.”

South Africa had imposed a ban on imports of US chicken for about 15 years due to several sanitary issues. It also had concerns over a major outbreak of bird flu in the US that killed almost 50 million birds last year.

However, US officials had objected to South Africa’s restrictions on US meat imports, citing that their products did not pose health risks. Officials also contended that the ban violated terms of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), a free trade deal to increase exports from South Africa to the US.