By Martin Banks - 20th July 2010
The decision not to impose a ban was justified by the available evidence
Nikiforos Diamandouros
The European ombudsman has criticised the European commission for its delay in imposing restrictions on Brazilian beef imports in 2008 to deal with risks from foot and mouth disease.
However, Nikiforos Diamandouros rejected a call from a federation of British and Irish farm organisations that the executive should have imposed a complete ban on Brazilian beef from 2007.
The commission explained that deficiencies had been identified in Brazilian beef control systems in November 2007. As a consequence, it imposed stringent import restrictions on imports of beef from the country but considered an outright ban unnecessary.
The import restrictions meant that only 412 Brazilian cattle farms were deemed eligible for export to the EU, compared to around 10,000 previously. The farm organisations said, however, that the import restrictions were not enough.
They alleged that, after a highly critical report of the EU Food and Veterinary Office in November 2007, the commission should have taken more stringent measures to prevent Brazilian beef from entering the EU.
The commission argued that an outright ban was not necessary because, from mid March 2008, only beef from approved farms in Brazil could be imported into the EU.
The Strasbourg-based ombudsman agreed, saying, "The decision not to impose a ban was justified by the available evidence. "
However, he criticised the delay in restricting beef imports from unapproved farms in Brazil between February and March 2008.
The Greek official also called on the commission to continue its regular inspections outside the EU to ensure that the necessary standards of animal and public health are respected.
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