York's associate in South America (3)

I believe the answer is:

ham

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'york's associate' is the definition.
I can't judge whether this defines the answer.

'in south america' is the wordplay.
'in' says the answer is hidden in the clue.
'HAM' is hidden within 'south america'.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for ham that I've seen before include "Overacting actor" , "Gammon" , "An actor who overdoes it in meaty way" , "Succulent meat or extravagant actor" , "A poor actor - overdoes it" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.

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