In
Mexico, pork skins are mostly used to make chicharrones, a
popular fried delicacy found in a variety of dishes, from tacos
to soups. The skins are not as prized by American consumers,
underscoring the complementary nature of the binational pork
trade.
Mexico was the biggest export market for U.S. pork by volume
before being surpassed by China in 2020.
After notifying U.S. authorities of the tainted skins, Mexico's
health safety agency, Senasica, requested on June 16 that
Smithfield's Tar Heel, North Carolina, facility's export license
be revoked. The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the
suspension on Monday.
Last year, the plant exported 41,000 tonnes of skins, bacon and
other pork products to Mexico, and this year through May another
24,000 tonnes, according to government data.
Smithfield, owned by Hong Kong-listed WH Group, said the issue
is not related to Smithfield or the facility, but is due to a
third party company. It said in a statement that authorities are
working to resolve the matter.
Senasica said the third-party shipper was Rava Forwarding Inc,
which also became ineligible to export from a cold storage
facility in Laredo, Texas, on June 18.
Any resumption in shipments from either facility will likely
take at least a few months, according to Senasica's press
office.
Smithfield's Tar Heel plant - the world's largest - can
slaughter more than 34,000 hogs daily, about 7% of U.S.
capacity, according to industry estimates.
Senasica's decision to prevent further exports from the
Smithfield and Rava facilities was based on the "accumulation"
of tainted cargos of refrigerated pork skins.
Specifically, an April 15 rejection from the Tar Heel plant came
after inspectors observed rotting product covered with
"yellowish spots." Two subsequent rejections in June, which may
have included a mix of product from both facilities, revealed
more of the spots as well as fungus outbreaks.
Rava could not immediately be reached for comment.
(Reporting by David Alire Garcia; Additional reporting by Tom
Polansek in Chicago and Adriana Barrera in Mexico City; Editing
by David Gregorio)
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