China agrees to resume Brazilian beef imports after mad cow case

China will restart beef imports from Brazil, the world’s biggest exporter, a month after the trade was halted over a case of mad cow disease.

The Asian nation has agreed to resume purchases of Brazilian beef from March 23. The move will likely boost the shares of meatpackers including JBS SA, Marfrig Global Foods and Minerva SA, which have been hit by the suspension. 

Brazil is the top beef supplier to China, which is also the main destination for Brazilian beef exports, accounting for roughly 60% of shipments. The mad cow case in Brazil is “atypical,” which generally means the animal contracted the disease spontaneously and presents no threat to the nation’s herds. 

The lifting of the trade curb comes ahead of Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s visit to China, scheduled to take place from March 26 to 31.

Beef trade between the two nations was halted on Feb. 22 as part of a sanitary protocol. President Lula is expected to renegotiate that requirement under which a single mad cow case triggers an export ban for the whole country.