South African poultry industry faces uncertainty despite Brazil's avian flu declaration

IOL News

5 hours ago

Farming associations have welcomed news that Brazil declared itself free of the Avian flu outbreak earlier this week.
Image: supplied
Farming associations across South Africa are cautiously optimistic following Brazil's announcement earlier this week that it has declared itself free of the recent avian flu outbreak.
This declaration comes in the wake of the Department of Agriculture lifting its ban on the import of poultry and poultry products from Brazil, though only partially. The ban had initially been enforced after the outbreak was contained to one state in Brazil.
South African meat producers on Thursday raised red flags, however, cautioning that despite this promising news, a shortage of Mechanically Deboned Meat (MDM) was still anticipated in the local market.
Francois Rossouw, CEO of Southern African Agri Initiative (Saai), said Brazil would need to provide sufficient evidence on their Avian Flu health for the department to completely lift the ban on poultry.
'The Department of Agriculture should carefully assess Brazil's current biosecurity measures and disease management strategies. However, it is essential to ensure that any imports do not pose a risk to our local poultry industry,' he said.
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Rossouw added that the news that Brazil declared itself free of Avian flu could be seen as a double-edged sword for the South African poultry industry.
'On one hand, it may lead to increased competition, which could benefit consumers through lower prices. On the other hand, local farmers may face challenges in competing with imported poultry products. It is crucial for us to support local farmers by promoting best practices in biosecurity.'
Rossouw said that Brazil's declaration indicates that they have effectively managed the outbreak, which is commendable.
However, Izaak Breitenbach, the CEO of the South African Poultry Association, said raised concern about poultry imports from the United States, who themselves face an Avian Flu outbreak.
Breitenbach said all poultry-producing states in the US had been affected, and 27 of those states are currently banned by the South African authorities from exporting poultry to this country.
'Decisions on which US states could or could not export poultry to South Africa should be taken by South Africa, not the US. These decisions have previously been taken by the Department of Agriculture, based on US notifications to the World Organisation of Animal Health. However, the department has now allowed the US to 'self-impose and self-lift' bird flu restrictions,' he said.
'By granting the United States the right to determine its own disease status and export policies, the department has created a serious conflict of interest. The risk is palpable: a country grappling with widespread outbreaks of bird flu can now prioritise its own interests and potentially expose South Africa to the very disease that cost this industry R9.5 billion and wiped out 30% of its long-living chicken flock in 2023. We call on the DoA to end this 'concession' and restore its role as a protector of the local industry.'
The SA Meat Producers Association (Sampa) warned that processed meat producers have or will soon run out of MDM because of an impasse between South Africa and Brazil over the technicalities of lifting a ban on poultry from the South American nation.
A refusal by Brazilian authorities to accept the proposed wording on South Africa's Import Health Certificate means Brazilian poultry is still unavailable to importers and manufacturers over a week later.
Gordon Nicoll, chairperson of Sampa, said they were delighted the department delighted when announced last week that it would accept poultry and poultry products from non-affected Brazilian provinces as members had not received stock of MDM for almost two months.
'Some of our processors had been forced to lay off staff because factories were silent. The fact that we still can't import MDM is disastrous for our members. Even if stock is shipped immediately, we will most likely only receive it in August, which means that factories have lain idle for three months. No manufacturing business can sustain that,' Nicoll said.