Illustration
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US agrees to buy poultry from Israel
Poultry export to US expected to resume in light of changes, improvements in Israeli slaughterhouse standards, facility hygiene
Agriculture Minister Shalom Simhon and the US government agreed to advance the inspection of slaughterhouses in Israel in preparation for the coming renewed export of poultry to the US.
For the past year, the US has refused to accept poultry from Israel due to unfit slaughter procedures that did not meet the American administration’s criteria. This led to Israeli poultry farmers losing millions of dollars.
“We have changed the standards, expanded the supervision in the slaughterhouses, improved the enforcement system of veterinarian services in the slaughterhouses, and I have now agreed to advance the inspection by the authorized American officials,” Simhon told the “Yedioth Ahronoth” daily newspaper.
The US announced its refusal to import poultry from Israel following an inspection conducted by the US Ministry of Agriculture’s Department of Food Policy.
The inspection judged that Israeli poultry facilities did not meet American requirements and standards. Furthermore, some of the facilities inspected in Israel were considered to have low hygiene.
