Uruguay will be able to export poultry meat, offal and poultry by-products to Macaoan autonomous region on the southern coast of mainland China, an achievement that is considered It is the first step for Uruguayan poultry production to enter the market of the Asian gianta goal considered highly relevant in this productive sector.
Exports may be made without the need to sign a protocol or have the registry of the slaughterhousesconfirmed to The Observer Adriana Lupinacci, director of the International Affairs Unit (UAI) of the Ministry of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries (MGAP).
In addition, in another important attraction, the entry will be made without the need to pay tariffs.
The Chancellery of the Republic announced the opening of this meat market -which in November it had also been enabled for sheep and beef–; as expressed from the portfolio, this represents “a great boost for the national industry” and represents “one more step in strategic economic relations with China”.
Macau has autonomy from the Beijing government to deal with its trade and health issues. It was that autonomy that allowed him to sign the sanitary authorization for Uruguay.
The Foreign Ministry indicated that this opening occurred after joint work between the portfolio, the UAI and the General Directorate of Livestock Services of the MGAP, with the articulation of the National Meat Institute (INAC) and the private sector.
Entering the Macao market “is a challenge” for the sector, said the president of Cupra.
One step to enter China
For poultry meat producers, this announcement was very good news. From the Uruguayan Chamber of Poultry Processors (Cupra) they expressed, on Twitter: “Macao is the first step to enter that region of Asia, we hope to reach Hong Kong soon and then China.”
Another great achievement of the work that we have been developing together with the National Government: @MGAPUruguay Y @MRREE_Uruguay. Macao is the first step to enter that region of Asia, we hope that Hong Kong will arrive soon and then China! https://t.co/YuGQEcHGW8
– Chickens from Uruguay (@PollosdelU) February 10, 2022
In the framework of the 10to Chicken and Hen Festival, which took place in San Bautista over the weekend, the Minister of Livestock, Agriculture and Fisheries (MGAP), Fernando Mattos, announced that the ministry is making progress in enabling the Hong Kong market and assured that That, together with Macao, are “two markets that will give rise to entering the Chinese market”.
Cupra president, Fernando Stanham, explained to The Observer that “there is like a ladder to enter China, which is our aspiration.”
“First we must enter Macao and then Hong Kong, which we hope will happen in a few months,” he added.
As detailed, the most important and most demanded products in this market are claws, chicken wings, legs and whole chicken. “There is a preference similar to that of China and that can help us start to exercise the market,” she explained.
tourist pole
Macau is a large tourist and hotel center that receives mainly visitors from the Asian continent. This market has a booming economy, more than 600,000 inhabitants and an annual import volume of US$400 million, Lupinacci explained.
Bearing in mind that there is a large presence of five-star hotels, and gastronomic development, this is seen as an opportunity.
From the Foreign Ministry they expressed that it also represents a great opportunity because it is a great demander of poultry meat and a high-value market as a tourist center.
“The opening of this market represents a great boost for the national industry”indicates a statement from the portfolio.
A challenge for the sector
Stanham maintained that “this is a new challenge that the sector has set itself and that the government is accompanying very firmly: converting the national poultry sector into a sustainable exporter.”
Uruguay currently exports claws, discarded hens and whole chickens. Annually the sector exports 1,000 tons. Some of the destinations to which it is exported are Argentina, Mozambique, Congo and Kuwait, he detailed.
“Uruguay exports so little because neither the sector nor the government ever considered setting up a high-quality market access system,” commented the former president of INAC, adding that Macao as a market presents a good economic opportunity, because while the average price for Uruguayan exports is US$ 800 per ton, in that market the meat is valued at US$ 2,000 per ton.
