The U.S. Department of Agriculture recently announced that Peru has lifted all remaining trade restrictions related to bovine spongiform encephalopathy and granted full market access for U.S. beef.

U.S. Meat Export Federation (USMEF) senior vice president for global marketing Dan Halstrom explained that Peru is already a well-established destination for U.S. beef exports, but having all federally inspected plants eligible to export to Peru provides an excellent opportunity for volume growth. Peru is an especially strong market for beef variety meat items such as tripe and hearts, which command little value in the domestic U.S. market. Although beef shipments to Peru slowed last year, exports still exceeded $25 million, according to USMEF.

Halstrom added that U.S. pork is also making inroads in Peru. In 2015, pork exports to Peru increased nearly 50% in value to $9.8 million.