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IOL News
4 days ago
- Health
- IOL News
South Africa faces poultry supply concerns amid Brazilian import ban
Farming associations and agricultural associations have raised concern about the impact of the Department of Agriculture's ban on chicken from Brazil due to an avian influenza outbreak. Image: supplied South Africa is grappling with potential food insecurity this winter after the Department of Agriculture's has banned chicken from Brazil due to an avian influenza outbreak. The ban, effective since May 15, 2023, halts imports of live poultry, eggs, and fresh or frozen poultry meat, raising alarms over the supply of mechanically deboned meat (MDM) and poultry offal critical for affordable processed meats like polony, viennas, and sausages. The Association of Meat Importers and Exporters warned on Wednesday of serious economic and food insecurity consequences for South Africa as a result of the recent outbreak of Avian Influenza (HPAI) in Brazil. 'Local producers cannot, and will not be able to meet the gap in supply of poultry offal (feet, gizzards, and skins) and MDM, driving up prices and threatening the affordability and accessibility of basic protein for millions,' it said. Georg Southey, the manager at Merlog Foods, said on Wednesday said there is likely to be a shortage of 400 million meals per month, which equates to seven meals per person per month across the country. Two weeks of import shipments have already been wasted, and a further 100 million meals will be lost every week if the government continues with business as usual. Southey added that the country has only 2.5 weeks of food reserves in some key categories. 'This will have devastating consequences for food security and exacerbate a dreadful reality that estimates suggest over 30% of South African households in at least four provinces already have inadequate food and often go hungry,' he added. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ Ad Loading Arnold Prinsloo, CEO of meat producer Eskort, noted that MDM from Brazil is used by Eskort and its competitors to make polony, viennas, Russians, and Braaiwors. "Production lines will come to a standstill before the end of June if the ban on Brazilian chicken is not lifted. This will deprive South Africa's most vulnerable citizens of more than 400 million low-cost meals per month,' he said. Prinsloo added that vulnerable families and thousands of school feeding schemes rely heavily on polony, and there is a real danger of widespread hunger and malnutrition if Eskort and its competitors cannot sustain supplies. 'The Department of Agriculture, which imposed the Brazil ban on 15 May, should follow the example of Namibia and Mozambique by narrowing the ban to chicken from Rio Grande do Sul, the only state affected by avian flu. The rest of Brazil can be regarded as safe, and a pragmatic and proactive decision to accept imports on that basis will go a long way to heading off the looming crisis in South Africa.' However, Izaak Breitenbach, the CEO of the South African Poultry Association, offered a counterpoint, suggesting the impact on poultry meat supply may be overstated. 'South Africa imports a reduced volume of chicken meat from Brazil, and local production can ramp up quickly, especially as demand typically dips this time of year,' Breitenbach said. While acknowledging a shortage of MDM, which is predominantly imported from Brazil, he noted that South Africa produces minimal MDM domestically and may shift imports to countries like Thailand. 'There will not be a shortage of chicken meat, but MDM supply will be constrained,' he clarified. Investment analyst Anthony Clark from Smalltalkdaily Research said that America and Europe have also reported avian influenza outbreaks. 'Brazil is the biggest exporter of poultry products into South Africa. They have a market share of around 80%, so it is concerning that there is a ban on their products. This means that there is very little chicken coming into this country. However, products that are coming in from Brazil are MDM which goes into processed meat such as polony, viennas, and Russians. The other products that are still coming in from Brazil are chicken offals such as carcasses, heads, and livers.'
IOL News
6 days ago
- Business
- IOL News
Eskort warns of food security crisis as chicken imports from Brazil prohibited
This ban, enacted by the Department of Agriculture on 15 May due to an avian flu outbreak in Brazil's Rio Grande Do Sul state, has raised urgent alarms within the local meat industry. Image: Pexels/IOL South Africa stands on the precipice of a significant food security crisis following the government's decision to ban chicken imports from Brazil. This ban, enacted by the Department of Agriculture on 15 May due to an avian flu outbreak in Brazil's Rio Grande Do Sul state, has raised urgent alarms within the local meat industry. Arnold Prinsloo, CEO of meat producer Eskort, has expressed grave concerns over the ban's implications for the country's most vulnerable populations, highlighting that production lines may halt by the end of June if the restrictions are not reversed. 'This will deprive South Africa's most vulnerable citizens of more than 400 million low-cost meals per month,' Prinsloo warned during a press briefing. He emphasised that many families and numerous school feeding schemes rely heavily on processed chicken products such as polony, Viennas, Russians, and Braaiwors. The looming halt in production poses a serious risk of widespread hunger and malnutrition, especially among low-income households. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. 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Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ Prinsloo has called for the Department of Agriculture to adopt a more tailored approach, akin to that of neighbouring countries like Namibia and Mozambique, which have managed their import bans more cautiously. He advocates for a regionalised ban that focuses solely on the affected state, allowing imports from the rest of Brazil. 'A pragmatic and proactive decision to accept imports from unaffected regions will go a long way to heading off the looming crisis in South Africa,' he stated. Echoing these sentiments, industry bodies, including the Association of Meat Importers and Exporters and the South African Meat Processors Association, have urged the government to align with World Organisation for Animal Health protocols, which would facilitate continued trade from unaffected areas. Countries such as Japan and Saudi Arabia have successfully implemented zoning strategies, allowing them to import poultry while shielding public health. The economic repercussions are profound. South Africa imports around 19,000 tonnes of mechanically deboned chicken from Brazil monthly. This quantity is essential for producing a staggering 404 million low-cost meals each month when mixed with other ingredients, according to Prinsloo. The projected 4- to 6-week gap in supply may see production facilities idle, leading to potential job losses and destabilising the lower living standards market, creating a recipe for socio-economic upheaval. Critics within the local poultry industry have claimed they can fill the gap in supply. However, Prinsloo counters these assertions by stating that while there may be capacity for fresh or frozen chicken, local producers fail to meet the essential need for mechanically deboned chicken, a product for which South Africa relies on Brazil for 92%. 'This is why the situation is extremely serious,' he added. Finally, Eskort touts its rigorous production processes as ensuring the safety of its products amid health concerns related to avian flu. By heating mechanically deboned meat to temperatures exceeding 70°C, they produce safe, consumable products, a practice that has been integral to their 108-year history without any food safety issues.
