Brazil meat exports can resume if rules met, EU says

Brazilian meat exports to the European Union can resume once Brazil shows it complies with the bloc's animal health rules, the EU said after suspending imports from the South American country.

The suspension took effect on Thursday. Brussels said Brazil had failed to provide enough guarantees that its exports meet EU standards aimed at preventing the misuse of antibiotics in livestock farming.

Brazil's foreign and agricultural ministries voiced “deep concern” and said they hoped negotiations would produce a rapid, objective and transparent solution that was “free from protectionist pressures.” They said Brazil had adopted the necessary measures and provided relevant information to the EU.

“If the negotiations do not lead in due time to a satisfactory solution, the Brazilian government reserves the right to resort to appropriate instruments in order to guarantee balanced trade conditions,” the government said.

The EU bans the use of antimicrobials to promote growth in livestock and restricts the use of antibiotics reserved for human medicine as part of efforts to curb antimicrobial resistance. Brazil was placed in May on an EU list of countries that do not adhere to those rules.

European Commission spokesman Olof Gill said the rules, which took effect for imports on Thursday and have applied to European producers since 2022, had been “well known” to trading partners “for a long time.”

“Once they can show compliance, exports to the European Union of these products from Brazil will be able to resume,” Gill said.

Brazil was the EU's second-largest supplier of beef in 2025, exporting more than 92,000 tonnes worth more than 713 million euros, or $825 million. The measure also affects poultry, eggs and honey.

The EU decision comes after criticism from farmers and from France following the bloc's January 2026 free trade agreement with the Mercosur countries of Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay.