United States-Full impact of meat bans hits home in the USA.
Costs are mounting for pork producers as some countries, concerned about the global spread of a new strain of swine flu, ban U.S., Canadian and Mexican pork, industry groups said on Thursday.
Government officials have said the reasons for the bans are unsubstantiated because consumers cannot contract the virus by eating pork. The virus is spread from person to person and has never been found in livestock.
The World Health Organization has renamed the flu to influenza A under pressure from countries and livestock groups.
The bans have cut U.S. pork exports by 8 to 12 percent and slowed buying from Mexico, an official from the U.S. Meat Export Federation said on Wednesday.
Based on 2008 numbers, the ban on pork products will cost the U.S. pork industry $710 million annually, or roughly $13.6 million per week, if trade in pork is not restored, the American Meat Institute estimated.
Canadian pork exports are down 5 to 10 percent because of the bans and uncertainty created by the global situation.
Several countries have banned Mexican pork and swine exports, but Mexico is a net pork importer, and its pork exports go mainly to Japan and South Korea, which have not restricted meat imports.
RESTRICTIONS ON U.S. PORK EXPORTS:
* Russia - all meat (including beef and poultry) from California, Texas, New York; all pork from Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, New Jersey, New Mexico, Ohio, Oklahoma and Florida.
* China - pork and swine from California, Texas, Kansas, New York, Ohio
* South Korea - live swine, but not pork
* Kazakhstan - pork from Texas, California, Kansas
* Ukraine - swine, all pork and all products including pet food
* Serbia - raw pork and swine
* Croatia - pork and swine
* Thailand - pork, swine, swine genetics, hides and skins
* Philippines - all pork
* United Arab Emirates - all pork
* Indonesia - all pork
* Honduras - swine and pork
* Saint Lucia - pork, swine and pig semen
* Ecuador - all pork
* Dominican Republic - pork and swine
* El Salvador - pork, swine and byproducts
SOURCES: U.S. Trade Representative, U.S. Agriculture Department, Ecuador agriculture department.
RESTRICTIONS ON CANADIAN PORK EXPORTS:
* Croatia - pork and swine
* El Salvador - pork
* Honduras - pork
* Japan - swine
* Philippines - pork and swine
* South Korea - swine
* Ukraine - pork and swine
SOURCES: Department of International Trade, Canadian Food Inspection Agency.
