Colombia has fully recognized Brazilian animal rendering products, with the acceptance of sanitary requirements for the export of bovine blood meal intended for animal feed. The decision removes the last remaining restriction and ensures that all animal rendering products are officially authorized to access the Colombian market.
The advancement is the result of a technical and institutional effort led by ABRA, within the scope of Brazilian Renderers, a partnership between the Brazilian Renderers Association (ABRA) and the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (ApexBrasil), aimed at expanding and consolidating strategic markets for the sector.
The market opening was formalized following a statement by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock (MAPA) and the Colombian Agricultural Institute (ICA), the country’s sanitary authority, which accepted the proposal presented by Brazil for the bilateral definition of sanitary requirements applicable to exports. The criteria have already been published by ICA, making the market opening effective and providing regulatory certainty for operations.
With this decision, a cycle of technical negotiations conducted over recent years comes to an end, expanding the portfolio of authorized products and offering greater predictability for Brazilian exports to Colombia.
In addition to sanitary efforts, the strategy included actions to strengthen commercial ties with the Colombian market. In 2023, during REAM, an edition of Business Connection Americas was held, bringing together Brazilian companies and buyers from the region. The initiative continued in Medellín in 2024, again within the context of REAM, strengthening relationships with the local productive and importing sector.
The progress also counted on the work of Brazil’s agricultural attaché in Colombia, Clovis Augusto Serafini, whose technical leadership and ongoing dialogue with local authorities helped ensure process fluidity and security in the sanitary dialogue between the two countries.
Brazilian Renderers
Since 2012, ABRA and ApexBrasil have jointly promoted the Brazilian Renderers project, with the aim of fostering exports from the Animal Recycling sector, including meals, fats, blood products, palatability enhancers, and hydrolyzed animal proteins. Through participation in trade fairs, the organization of workshops, and other special trade promotion actions, the projects highlight attributes of the animal recycling industry and its products, such as quality, sanitary status, and production sustainability, while strengthening the international branding of these products and fostering new business opportunities for Brazilian exporters. Information on how to take part in the sectoral projects can be found at brazilianrenderers.com.
About ABRA
The Brazilian Renderers Association (ABRA) is an entity that represents industries in the animal recycling sector producing meals, fats, blood products, hydrolyzed proteins, and palatability enhancers, which are used as ingredients in the formulation of feed for production animals and pet food, as well as fats used in biofuel manufacturing. It is a non-profit organization, founded in 2006, that works to promote its members, publicize actions related to the sector, mediate relations with other entities and government bodies, and foster business generation in both domestic and international markets. To learn more, visit: abra.ind.br.
About ApexBrasil
The Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (ApexBrasil) works to promote Brazilian products and services abroad and attract foreign investment to strategic sectors of the Brazilian economy. To achieve these objectives, ApexBrasil carries out targeted trade promotion actions aimed at increasing exports and enhancing the value of Brazilian products and services abroad, such as trade and prospecting missions, business matchmaking rounds, support for the participation of Brazilian companies in major international trade fairs, visits by foreign buyers and opinion leaders to learn about Brazil’s productive structure, among other business platforms also designed to strengthen the Brazil brand.
The Agency also works in coordination with public and private stakeholders to attract foreign direct investment (FDI) to Brazil, focusing on strategic sectors for the development of the competitiveness of Brazilian companies and the country. To learn more, visit: apexbrasil.com.br.
Source: ABRA Communications Office
Luísa Schardong, journalist, MTB/RS 0018094