Details About Returning 787 French Calves From Algiers Port

The French Ministry of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty revealed the details of Algeria’s refusal to import 787 calves destined for meat consumption in Algiers port last September, noting that the French party held talks at the time with its Algerian counterpart to reach understandings, but it was to no avail and announced that an Algerian mission of veterinary services was heading to France to put limit what it described as “situations like this one”.

The French Ministry stated, in response to impeachment in the Senate issued on November 13, directed by senator Hussein Bourgi, that the Algerian authorities refused to land 787 heads of calves in Algiers port on September 5, 2022, after leaving the port of Sète on the 3rd of the same month, noting that vigorous talks took place with the Algerian authorities at the time, to no avail, in an attempt to export these calves.

The same ministry explained that the calves were returned to France after they left the port of Algiers on September 19, and arrived at the port of Sète on September 23, with the aim of slaughtering, burning and disposing of them, given that European laws prevent their re-entry into the food chain of the unified space.

The response of French Ministry tried to bring implicit charges against Algeria, considering the animals suspected of being infected with foot-and-mouth disease, given that they fed on hay that came from Algeria, where there are foci of foot-and-mouth disease, according to what the response claimed.

According to the French authorities, four of the calves that were returned and analyzed showed that they were infected and were subjected to the euthanasia process, and the remaining heads were slaughtered in two slaughterhouses that were allocated for the same purpose, explaining that the French authorities bore the financial and technical consequences of this process.

The French Ministry of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty revealed a mission of the Algerian veterinary authorities to France to discuss this file and prevent any similar situations in the future.