ICYMI: Bird flu threatens 2023 chicken imports in South Africa
Frozen Whole Chicken
Meat
South Africa
Published Mar 27, 2023
Tridge summary
South Africa has been importing chicken from the US, Brazil and Argentina. However, due to the bird flu, Covid-19 and higher import tariffs, imports have been declining. Meanwhile, South Africa has…
Original content
Are South Africa’s chicken imports going up or down? According to the advocacy body FairPlay, the answer is – both. This is because chicken imports have declined on an annual level since 2018, but rising monthly since November 2022. “It’s too early to tell whether the three-month rise will become a sustained upward trend, particularly for the frozen bone-in portions such as leg quarters which cause the most problems for South African poultry farmers,” FairPlay said in a statement. The monthly percentage increases are high – 31% for bone-in portions in January – but it is all off a low base because of years of steadily reducing imports. FairPlay said the latest official statistics contain interesting information about what is coming in, who is supplying it, and the steady worldwide spread of avian influenza (bird flu). “The poultry industry estimates that the lower import volumes in recent years are due to bird flu, Covid-19 disruptions, and higher import tariffs, in that order. ...
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