More Nations Import Meat From Ethiopia

More Nations Import Meat From Ethiopia

Governments of Iran , Lebanon and Turkey  are making final documentations to start importing fresh meat from Ethiopia .

Reports say that already Saudi Arabia ,United Arab Emirates ,Qatar ,Yemen and Bahrain  are importing sheep and goat meat from Ethiopia .

The Director, Ethiopian Meat and Dairy Development Institute, Mr. Gedey Mehdin, said that Iran had agreed to buy 10,000 tonnes of meat worth 40 million dollars.

He said this demand was more than the total export of last year.

Final deal

Medhim said Lebanon has also sent a team of experts to inspect the animals and facilities before signing a final agreement.

He said, similarly, Turkish importers have been discussing with the government to get a final deal to start importing fresh meat to Turkey .

“Ethiopian abattoirs and other hygienic and veterinary services are the main attractions to our new international meat markets'' , Mehdin said.

He said in the last three months, Ethiopia had exported about 8,100 tonnes of goat and sheep meat.

More abattoirs

“We are working towards expanding the cattle meat export to cover about 80 per cent of global demand. Most of our meat exporting companies concentrate on sheep and goat, so there is a need to also focus on cattle which is also in abundant in the country'' , he said.

According to Mehdin, two additional abattoirs located in Mekele and Bahir Dar would be dedicated to the processing and export of beef.

He said Canadian and Ethiopian joint venture investment in abattoir and meat export would also pave way for the establishment of another abattoir in Somali region, a potential livestock production zone for beef export.

Freighting

Mehdin explained that his institute was established three years ago to encourage meat and dairy production and export.

He said government would soon commence frozen meat freight on ships which was more preferable than using air cargo.

“We are working towards improving production and quality related issues to get a better price from the international market. On average, our price for export is about four dollars per kilogram, which is lower than other exporting countries'' , he said.

The Prime Minister, Meles Zenawi, chairs the Export Coordinating Committee for sheep, goat and cattle meat.

NAN/Margaret/Yinka