Mongolia Plans Halal Meat Exports To Central Asia

In the first 10 months of this year, Mongolia has exported 500 tons of meat and by-products to Uzbekistan. During a virtual meeting with Uzbekistan's Minister of Agriculture, Mongolia's Minister of Food, Agriculture and Light Industry highlighted the potential for increasing future exports to Uzbekistan.

As of December 2022, Uzbekistan authorized nine additional Mongolian enterprises to import meat and meat products, raising the total number of qualified exporters to 26.

In 2019, the two nations agreed to collaborate on projects and programs to enhance cooperation in animal husbandry and veterinary services, including mutual recognition of veterinary certificates, facilitating meat exports to Uzbekistan.

During the bilateral meeting, both countries explored developing cooperation in the livestock sector and discussed a collaborative project to establish a quarantine zone with a government-implemented veterinary regimen. Uzbekistan's representatives also showed interest in expanding imports by setting up a joint farm in Mongolia.

The parties concurred that cooperation in the "quarantine zone with a veterinary regimen" in Mongolia's three western provinces would be beneficial.

In recent years, Mongolian enterprises have been adopting Halal Slaughtering Norms, enabling them to supply Halal meats to countries like Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Iran, and Azerbaijan.

At the SCO summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, in September 2022, the Presidents of Mongolia and Uzbekistan agreed to form an intergovernmental commission.

The inaugural meeting of this commission is scheduled for the first quarter of 2023 in Uzbekistan and will be led by the Ministers of Agriculture from both countries.

Meat exports have the potential to diversify Mongolia's economy and lessen its dependence on extractive industries such as mining.

Currently, Mongolia exports a relatively small amount of meat compared to its national livestock herd, which exceeds 71 million animals.

With a population of approximately 3.4 million, Mongolia has a high livestock-to-people ratio, indicating significant potential for growth in meat exports.