China, EU, Chile halt meat from Brazil

RIO DE JANEIRO — A scandal over allegations of bribery in Brazil’s meat-packing industry to allow the sale of expired meat deepened as the European Union, China and Chile decided to halt some meat imports from Latin America’s largest nation.

Brazil is one of the world’s largest exporters of meat, and it is struggling to emerge from its worst recession in decades.

The announcements came despite a flurry of meetings that Brazilian President Michel Temer held with ambassadors and assurances from the government that Brazilian meats in general are safe.

Speaking to reporters in Brussels, European Union spokesman Enrico Brivio said the Brazilian companies accused of bribery would be temporarily barred from shipping meat to the EU.

The EU “will guarantee that any of the establishments involved in the fraud will be suspended,” said Brivio, who didn’t cite companies by name or say how long the ban would last.

A few hours later, Brazilian Agriculture Minister Blairo Maggi said China had suspended the unloading of Brazilian meats in Chinese ports. Maggi played down that development, saying Chinese authorities were in the process of asking for more information.

“There is no Chinese embargo,” Maggi told reporters in Brasilia. “What we have are containers there that can’t leave the port to local markets.”