Meat packers in Brazil – the world’s biggest red meat and poultry exporter – have allegedly been selling rotten and salmonella-tainted produce.

As a result, there’s a serious possibility that big meat is joining the likes of big tobacco, big oil, and big sugar as nefarious in people’s minds.

From horse meat being sold as beef in the UK, fox meat sold as donkey meat in China, and now serious allegations of meat adulteration in Brazil, it seems that the meat industry is rarely far from a scandal.

The European Union banned imports from packing plants implicated in the scandal, while Chile, Hong Kong, and, crucially, China, went a step further; suspending all meat imports from Brazil.

While many of these countries have now removed some of these restrictions, some bans still apply and the memory of this scandal will continue to affect consumer choices.

China has continued to ban imports from producers under investigation and trust in other Brazilian producers has diminished.

How well do you really know your competitors?

Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.

Company Profile – free sample

Thank you!

Your download email will arrive shortly

Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample

We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form

By GlobalData
Visit our Privacy Policy for more information about our services, how we may use, process and share your personal data, including information of your rights in respect of your personal data and how you can unsubscribe from future marketing communications. Our services are intended for corporate subscribers and you warrant that the email address submitted is your corporate email address.

With the tender for a large amount of Chinese meat imports now effectively open for bidding, and the need for transparency paramount, US and Australian meat producers will likely be beneficiaries of the scandal in the short term.

Smaller-scale exporters like Uruguay, who are rolling out so-called farm to fork traceability on red meat, are also set to benefit.

However, in the longer term, the whole meat industry will be negatively affected by these kind of scandals and the wider food and drink sector is at risk of being painted with the corporate big bad wolf brush.