WASHINGTON, D.C. (Reuters) – China has agreed to resume U.S. pork imports by lifting a ban that lasted almost a year.
Shipments will begin again as soon as trade officials finalize export documents.
The move will open what U.S. meat exporters have described as their second-largest market for pork exports before Beijing halted trade last April over fears about the H1N1 flu outbreak.
“This agreement is a win for America’s pork producers, whose safe and high-quality exports can now flow freely into China and support agriculture jobs here at home,” said U.S. trade representative Ron Kirk.
China was one of dozens of markets that banned U.S. pork after the emergence of the virus, but was not linked to meat products.
U.S. agriculture secretary Tom Vilsack had secured an agreement with China in October to restart trade but the technical details took months to iron out.
