Trade Update: Peru Reduces Restrictions on U.S. Beef

Written by M. Sean High – Staff Attorney

On March 14, 2016, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued a press release announcing that the government of Peru has agreed to remove trade barriers regarding the importation of U.S. beef and beef products.

According to USDA, prior to the March 14, 2016 agreement, since 2003, Peru has only accepted the importation U.S. beef and beef products from those U.S. “establishments that participated in the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) Export Verification (EV) programs.” Now, according to the press release, as a result of the March 14, 2016 agreement, Peru will accept for importation “beef and beef products from all federally inspected U.S. establishments.”

USDA stated that the March 14, 2016 agreement reflects the World Organization for Animal Health’s (OIE) 2013 decision to upgrade the U.S.’ risk classification for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) from the status of “controlled BSE risk” to the status of “negligible BSE risk.” In a May 29, 2013 press release announcing OIE’s decision to upgrade the U.S.’ risk classification for BSE, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack stated: “[t]his decision demonstrates OIE's belief that both our surveillance for, and safeguards against, BSE are strong…[and that] U.S. beef and beef products are of the highest quality, wholesome and produced to the highest safety standards in the world.”

According to USDA, Peru is “one of the fastest growing markets in Latin America to all American beef and beef products…[and] [i]n 2015, the United States exported $25.4 million in beef and beef products to Peru.