(In story from March 20, updates paragraphs 2 to 4 after

ministry clarifies that the plant the minister was visiting has

not yet received permission to export to the UK)

By Ana Mano

SAO PAULO, March 20 (Reuters) - Brazil could soon get

approval to sell more meat products to the European Union, the

South American nation's Agriculture Minister Carlos Favaro said

on Wednesday.

Favaro's remarks were made during a visit to a BRF SA ( BRFS )

chicken plant in Lucas do Rio Verde, Mato Grosso

state, which is currently seeking permission to export products

to the United Kingdom.

On Wednesday, the minister had said the plant had already

received the green light for UK exports. In a statement on

Thursday, the agriculture ministry clarified that permission had

not yet been granted, but was in process and that the next step

will be an audit of the plant. If that is successful, the

ministry will proceed with authorizing Lucas do Rio Verde to

export chicken to the UK, it said.

"With the potential approval of BRF's plant to export to

the United Kingdom, which is a process that is already taking

place, there is the expectation that this will be the first step

towards conquering new markets in the EU," the ministry said on

Thursday, adding that it was an "expectation" rather than a

"guarantee."

In 2018, the EU suspended imports from 20 Brazilian meat

plants, mostly poultry producers.

The ban dealt a blow to Brazil's largest chicken processor,

BRF, which had 12 plants delisted by the EU after its

involvement in a food safety investigation.

Exports from delisted plants remain suspended, according to

meat lobby ABPA. But the EU has sent a mission to Brazil and

companies are awaiting its results, which could reverse the

bans, ABPA said.

The EU is currently Brazil's sixth largest chicken export

destination, ABPA said.

Favaro said BRF's Lucas do Rio Verde plant also has been

cleared to resume exports to China after a suspension that had

been in effect since 2016.

Brazil is the world's biggest meat exporter and accounts for

almost 40% of global chicken meat supplies, according to trade

data.

Last year, Brazil exported 316,000 metric tons of chicken

products to the EU, trade data shows.