US poultry sector reacts to Morocco access
Both bodies revealed they were “pleased” with the agreement after waiting 14 years for a health certificate to be authorised by Morocco since the country entered a free trade agreement with the US in 2004.
Extensive negotiations this year involving the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), which were led by the US Trade Representative’s Office, culminated with the opening of the market.
The move was implemented after Morocco issued a health certificate and updated the FSIS Export Library.
USA Poultry and Egg Council president Jim Sumner said the organisation looked forward to working with the Moroccan poultry industry to help grow the consumption of all poultry products, both domestic and foreign.
“What’s really great about this agreement is that the US is the only country with duty-free access for chicken. Morocco, being mostly a live bird market, does very little of its own chicken processing,” said Sumner.
“The US will have the opportunity to introduce many further processed chicken and even turkey products to the Moroccan market.”
Meanwhile, National Chicken Council president Mike Brown said producers should be very excited about the new market opportunity.
“This is welcome news and I commend the Administration for its continued efforts to open markets for US chicken around the world,” said Brown.
As part of the deal between the US and Morocco, there will be a duty-free quota of 6,400 metric tonnes (mt) for chicken parts. The quota will increase by 200mt each year until eventually becoming unlimited.
Morocco is expected to be a $10 million market for US poultry, with additional growth over time.
