The Cuban government has opened its market to Canadian livestock and meat, ending a ban that had been in place since BSE was discovered in Alberta in May 2003.
However, because Cuba has been a minor customer for Canadian beef and mainly purchased offal, it is unclear how much of a commercial boost it will be.
Federal agriculture minister Andy Mitchell visited Havana on March 31 for a quick meeting with president Fidel Castro and agriculture minister Alfredo Jordan Morales. A trade agreement was signed that had been in the works since December.
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Mitchell said Castro told him he wants to expand agricultural trade with Canada.
“He seemed very genuine in saying that and in saying he wants to do more business with us.”
He said the agreement clears the way to ship live cattle, sheep and goats, bovine semen and embryos. He called it an “important step” in convincing the world that Canadian beef and ruminant meat is safe.
According to the Canada Beef Export Federation, Canada sold just $3.3 million worth of beef to Cuba in 2002 before the BSE ban and most of that was livers from older cows.
Cam Daniels of CBEF said it will be the federation’s job to try to convince Cubans that they should buy a broader range of Canadian product.
He said Cuba imports as much as 7,000 tonnes of lean ground beef a year and purchasing decisions are highly influenced by price.
“They may have a preference for Canadian product but right now most of the ground beef they are buying comes from Chile because they can price it much lower than our product.”
There is a market in Cuba for hind quarter cuts and Daniels said CBEF officials will travel to Cuba to make the pitch for increased sales.
However, the federation said the first confirmed sale to Cuba under the new agreement is a shipment of livers from animals older than 30 months.
Mitchell said since Cuba indicated more than three months ago that beef trade would resume, negotiations have been started to sell various commodities including beans, peas, pork and cattle.
