Tuesday, January 12, 2016

Better Beef ok’d to export to Ukraine

The Cargill-owned Better Beef Ltd. plant in Guelph is one of 27 Canadian plants that have been approved to export meat to the Ukraine.

That’s more than double the number previously approved and follows an inspection visit by Ukrainian officials to 15 beef and pork plants last September.

Canada and the Ukraine signed a free trade agreement last summer, but the legal text has not yet been finalized.

When it is finally adopted, it will provide for duty-free access to Ukraine for “unlimited” beef and veal, duty-free access for 20,000 tonnes of frozen pork, and duty-free access for unlimited fresh chilled pork.

In 2014, Canada sold the Ukraine 25 tonnes of beef and veal products, valued at $47,000, and 2,031 tonnes of pork, valued at $4.4 million.

Ukraine’s total imports of beef products in 2014 were valued at $17.1 million and pork products at $193.6 million, the Canadian government said Monday.