The Brazilian government announced on Tuesday that China had lifted the ban on Brazilian beef imports it had imposed in the wake of the BSE crisis in 2012.

A deal signed during a visit by Chinese prime minister Li Keqiang authorised eight Brazilian beef factories to export to China. Brazil expects 17 more to be licensed next month and annual beef exports to China to top $500m.

The announcement came after the Sao Paulo-based meat processing and exporting group JBS posted strong results for the first quarter of 2015, with a net profit of 1.39bn reais (€410m). The company was just about breaking even in the same period last year. Although analysts attribute some of JBS’s profits to exchange rates, the company is clearly on a growth path.

Its chief executive officer Wesley Batista said he expected the US to allow imports of fresh Brazilian beef soon. Only cooked Brazilian beef is currently allowed into the US.