South Africa’s poultry imports plummeted in June as a bird flu ban blocked shipments from Brazil, its main supplier. This is the first month when the nine-week ban on Brazilian poultry imports has shown up in official statistics.
Import volumes in June were half of those in May, and nearly all of the drop was attributable to reduced supplies from Brazil. The effects of the ban are likely to be repeated in July and August, and possibly September.
The Brazil ban was in effect for May and June, and the first week of July. Due to lengthy shipment periods from Brazil, importers have said they expect the first containers with renewed supplies to arrive in September.
Imports account for nearly 20% of South Africa’s chicken consumption, and most of that comes from Brazil. The bulk of these supplies are mechanically deboned meat (MDM) and offal products such as chicken heads, feet and livers. MDM is a paste used in the production of processed meats such as polony and sausages.
June statistics show that poultry imports dropped 45% to 16 000 tonnes from more than 29 000 tonnes in May. The 13 000-tonne monthly decline equalled the drop in Brazilian imports.
After peaking in 2018, South African poultry imports dropped steadily to 2022, before rising slightly in the next two years. The nine-week ban on Brazilian supplies seems likely to result in another annual decline in 2025.
