Paraguay’s eligibility to export raw beef products to the USA on November 9, 2023

Paraguay’s Eligibility to Export Raw Beef Products to the United States On November 9, 2023, USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced a final rule to allow the importation of fresh beef from Paraguay under certain conditions. The final rule will enable raw intact beef products produced from cattle slaughtered in certified Paraguayan establishments on or after the final rule’s effective date of December 14, 2023 (30 days after publication), to be eligible for export to the United States. On March 24, 2023, FSIS granted a reinstatement of equivalence to Paraguay for their raw intact beef products food safety inspection system based on the assessment of the country’s food safety inspection system documentation and in-country verification audits conducted from November 1-17, 2021, and July 11-22, 2022. However, Paraguay, at the time, had been ineligible to export raw beef products to the U.S. due to animal health restrictions imposed by APHIS related to ...