Costa Rica’s National Animal Health Service simplifies dairy export for USA producers

COSTA RICA – Costa Rica’s National Animal Health Service (SENASA) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) have agreed to streamline the approval process for USA dairy facilities seeking to export products to Costa Rica.

The new resolution requires a signed letter from USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) to SENASA verifying the plant’s basic details and compliance with US sanitary requirements; requires a technical fact sheet of the products to be exported; and reduces SENASA’s deadline to review and approve plants from 90 to 30 days.

Previously, USA dairy exporters faced a lengthy and complex registration process that required extensive documentation and questionnaires before gaining approval to ship products to Costa Rica.

However, under the new system, SENASA has eliminated the cumbersome questionnaire requirement, replacing it with a simplified registration process.

According to the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS), this procedure applies to all US dairy facilities and products seeking export registration to Costa Rica.

Additionally, companies exporting industrial dairy ingredients that may have previously followed a different registration process must now also register under this new process, including ingredients such as whey, casein, butteroil, and sweet cream.

The decision comes at a crucial time, as Costa Rica’s dairy demand continues to grow, driven by its expanding middle class and strong economy.

With all dairy tariffs reaching zero under the Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR), USA dairy exporters now have an even greater opportunity to expand their presence in the Costa Rican market.

Dairy industry giants, including the U.S. Dairy Export Council (USDEC) and the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF), have welcomed the new process, recognising it as the result of years of collaborative efforts between U.S. trade organisations and government agencies.

Krysta Harden, President and CEO of USDEC, praised the agreement, stating that it acknowledges the strength of the U.S. dairy regulatory system and deepens bilateral trade relations between the two nations.

“Costa Rica is an excellent trading partner. This breakthrough between USDA and Costa Rica’s National Animal Health Service further cements that relationship and builds on the zero-tariff trading conditions for dairy exporters that began this year,” said Gregg Doud, NMPF’s President and CEO.

In light to the new agreement, US Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins announced that SENASA officially approved the first American dairy cooperative for export to Costa Rica, making it the first USA dairy facility to be registered under the new streamlined approval process.

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