The Saudi Health Authority - SFDA (Saudi Food and Drug Authority) - has authorized eight new establishments to export Brazilian beef and its products to Saudi Arabia.
The plants are: Fortefrigo Refrigerator ( Paragominas, Pará); Better Beef Refrigerator (Rancharia, São Paulo); Rio Grande Meat Trade Ltda (Imperatriz, Maranhão); Full Foods (Pará de Minas, Minas Gerais); Supreme Food Industry and Trade. (Ibirité, Minas Gerais); Frigol (São Félix do Xingu, Pará); Maxi Beef Brazilian Foods (Carlos Chagas, Minas Gerais) and Distriboi - Industry, Trade and Transport of Beef (Ji-Paraná, Rondônia).
In 2018, exports of Brazilian agricultural products to Saudi Arabia yielded US$1.7bn from more than 2.9 million tons. Chicken meat represented 47.4% of the value sold (US$804m and 486,000 tons). The main products exported to the Saudis are chicken (in natura), cane sugar (raw), beef (in natura), soy (grain and bran), corn, refined sugar and coffee (soluble and green).
In September of this year, the Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply, Tereza Cristina, was in that country negotiating the opening of the market for Brazilian agricultural products.
According to the minister, the qualification of new refrigerators is the result of President Jair Bolsonaro's recent trip to Saudi Arabia. “This is part of all the opening that the Ministry of Agriculture has been doing together with the federal government,” said Cristina, adding that “this is great news to start the week off well”.