The European Commission plans to re-enable Brazil to export poultry meat and honey to the European Union, pending a member state vote.
Member states will vote on the proposal during a meeting of the standing committee on plants, animals, food and feed on November 16 and 17, agenceurope.eu reported. The Commission first signaled this intention during an October 20-21 committee gathering. The measure covers only poultry meat and honey rather than all Brazilian animal products. Beef exports are excluded from the current proposal. Under committee rules, adoption requires a qualified majority vote unless member states reach a consensus without a formal objection. The committee president may also defer the vote until the end of the session or a later meeting.
AVEC, the European poultry association, reported that Brazil exported roughly 312,000 tonnes of poultry meat to the EU during the first nine months of 2026. That figure marks a 34% increase compared to the entire 2025 calendar year, while first-half imports rose 44% year-on-year.
“AVEC demande à la Commission de reporter tout vote sur le rétablissement de l’autorisation d’exportation du Brésil dans l’attente de garanties supplémentaires sur le respect des règles européennes relatives à l’usage des antimicrobiens,” the association said, according to agenceurope.eu.
Think tanks Farm Europe and Eat Europe also intervened ahead of the committee meeting. In a letter sent November 12 to Health Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi and Agriculture Commissioner Christophe Hansen, the organizations asked the Commission to delay the reinstatement.
The groups pressed for verifiable guarantees regarding official controls.
They emphasized the need for strict supply chain separation between goods destined for the European market and those produced under different standards.
“garanties « solides et vérifiables” must be established to prove official controls are effective, Farm Europe and Eat Europe wrote in their joint letter to the commissioners, as reported by agenceurope.eu.