After the sanitary protocol to sell meat to China came into effect and the industrial plants in Costa Rica were certified, the Central American country's sales to the Asian giant doubled between 2018 and 2019.
Figures from the Foreign Trade Promotion Agency (Procomer) show that in 2018 beef sales to China reached $22 million, while in 2019 they doubled to $57 million.
In the last fifteen years, the herd in the country has grown 300%, and it is reported that in some store chains the demand for meat and other buffalo products exceeds the supply.
Between 2004 and 2019, the number of buffaloes has increased considerably, from 3,000 to 12,000 heads, and according to estimates by the National Technical University (NTU), there are currently some 270 production farms in the country.
The Panamanian government's decision to raise the tariff on meat imported from Nicaragua from 3% to 30% to allow local producers to compete has so far shown no clear results.
In September 2018, the Panamanian government decided to establish barriers to the entry of Nicaraguan beef by raising the import tariff from 3% to 30%. This has not had the expected effects, as the prices paid to local producers have not risen.
In Costa Rica, producers of buffalo, rabbit and lamb meat sell their products through restaurants and some supermarkets, in response to growth in consumption which has been noted in recent years.
The sophistication of consumption, hand in hand with a greater diversification in the gastronomic supply at restaurants has been pushing up demand for nontraditional meats, such as rabbit, buffalo and lamb.
In 2015 the region as a whole imported $96 million worth of processed meat, led by El Salvador, which imported $25 million, followed by Guatemala with $22 million, and Honduras, with $16 million.
Figures onForeign Trade in Sausages Meat and Similar Products in Central America,analyzed by the Business Intelligence Unit at CentralAmericaData.com show that in 2015 the countries of Central America imported 33,528 tons of processed meat, equivalent to $96 million.
Producers and companies will be meeting on August 18 and 19 in Panama City to discuss issues such as regional integration and free movement of cargo.
The presence of 200 farmers from Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama are expected in the II Livestock Congress by the Central Federation of the Beef Industry.
The law which required packages of meat beef and pork products to have a label indicating the country of origin is no longer in effect.
After repeated resolutions from the World Trade Organization, which authorized Canada and Mexico to implement economic retaliation measures worth more than $1 billion, the US Congress has finally decided to remove the law that requires labeling of all red meat products which are sold in the retail market in the country.