Issues identified in imports from Brazil have underscored the importance of on-the-ground inspections in non-EU countries, according to senior European Commission officials.

Speaking to Agriland in Brussels this week on import controls, deputy director-general at the Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety (DG SANTE), Dr. Claire Bury said the issues identified in Brazilian beef consignments were not directly linked to the EU-Mercosur trade agreement.

The European Commission confirmed last month that Brazil will no longer be authorised to export a range of animal products to the EU from September 3.

Following a vote by member states, the commission released an "updated list of third countries authorised to export food-producing animals and animal products to the EU".

The countries on the list have proven their compliance with the EU restrictions on antimicrobial use in food-producing animals.

The list was developed to support the EU's action against the use of antimicrobials in the food chain

Imports

According to Dr. Bury, the violations highlighted the importance of strengthening oversight of imports entering the EU.

"These were issues that came up before the Mercosur agreement was signed and came into force," she explained.

Dr. Bury added that any infringement provides an opportunity to assess and improve the EU's import control systems.

"Any situation where we find that there has been an infringement is a constant learning curve for us in terms of checking how the system works in third countries," she said.

Audits

The director-general of DG SANTE detailed that Brazil's exclusion from the approved list underlines the value of carrying out audits in exporting countries rather than relying on documentary checks.

Dr. Bury commented: "It shows how important these third-country audits on the ground are, which is why we are going to increase the number of those audits by 50%."

According to commission officials, it does sometimes carry out remote audits, which involves third-countries filling out a questionnaire survey to see if they comply with EU food safety standards.

A spokesperson for the commission confirmed that remote checks usually occur due to security concerns in third countries or for small fishery consignments.

Task force

The director-general of DG SANTE highlighted that plans are currently in place to establish a new platform that brings together the commission and EU member states to assess how import controls are functioning.

Dr. Bury said: "We are setting up what we call a taskforce.

"It's actually a platform between us and all the member states coming together, looking at what happens on controls, both in products of animal origin and plants, seeing how these controls work in practice, comparing best practices and learning from experience."

She added that the taskforce would identify weaknesses in the current system and could potentially lead to changes in legislation if required.

She said: "Where necessary, if we identify gaps, we will up the levels amongst the member states - we may need to change the legislation, who knows?"

Alongside the taskforce, the commission is also developing a pool of experts that will visit border control posts across the EU to assess procedures and recommend improvements.

"They will look at what's happening on the ground and come back, helping us to improve the system to make it more resilient," Bury added

Mercosur

The EU-Mercosur Interim Trade Agreement came into force on Friday, May 1, 2026.

The trade agreement will allow an additional 99,000t of beef from Mercosur countries - including Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay - to enter the EU at a reduced tariff rate of 7.5%, which will be phased in over six years.

But 11 days after the EU-Mercosur trade deal provisionally came info effect, the EU then moved to confirm that Brazil will no longer be authorised to export a range of animal products to the EU from September.

This is because Brazil did not comply with the strict traceability records that is now demanded of imports from third countries.

The most recent violation was detected amongst a consignment of Brazilian beef, which was found to contain oestradiol - a hormone primarily used to control ovulation in heifers.

According to a commission spokesperson, the concern did not solely lie with the farm that used the hormone, rather that flags were raised regarding the certification body that approved the standards of the beef consignment in the first place.