Viet Nam has opened its market to beef and lamb products imported from 12 processing plants in Uruguay.—Illustrative image/Photo meaturuguay.com

HA NOI (Biz Hub)— Viet Nam has opened its market to beef and lamb products imported from 12 processing plants in Uruguay, according to newspapers in the South American country.

Uruguayan representatives said that their country had received requests from Viet Nam for more information about other processors and hoped more of them would be allowed to export beef to Viet Nam.

The Vice President of the Uruguay National Meat Institute (INAC), Fernando Perez Abella, noted that Viet Nam was a potential market of nearly 90 million consumers.

With high annual economic growth, Viet Nam had strong demand for meat that the domestic livestock industry had failed to meet, he said.

INAC President, Alfredo Fratti, accompanied the Vice President of Uruguay, Danilo Astori, to visit Viet Nam in November last year to promote exporting beef, one of the country's most important sources of foreign currency income.

Uruguay is one of the world's largest beef exporters. Last year, it shipped abroad 405,000 tonnes of meat, mostly beef, earning US$1.58 billion.

However, only $2 million worth of beef exports were directed to Viet Nam. — VNS