Brazil, the world’s largest chicken exporter, confirmed its first outbreak of bird flu on a poultry farm on Friday, triggering protocols for a country-wide trade ban from top buyer China and state-wide restrictions for other major consumers.
The outbreak in southern Brazil was identified at a farm supplying Vibra Foods, a Brazilian operation backed by Tyson Foods TSN.N, according to two people familiar with the matter.
Vibra and Tyson did not immediately respond to questions. Vibra has 15 processing plants in Brazil and exports to over 60 countries, according to its website.
Brazil exported some $10 billion of chicken meat in 2024, accounting for about 35% of global trade. Much of that came from meat processors BRF BRFS3.SA and JBS JBSS3.SA, which ship to some 150 countries.
China, Japan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are among the main destinations for Brazil’s chicken exports.
Brazilian Agriculture Minister Carlos Favaro said on Friday that under existing protocols, countries including China, the European Union and South Korea would ban poultry imports from Brazil for 60 days.
Argentina said it was suspending imports of all Brazilian poultry products until its neighbor is found free of bird flu.
Favaro said newly revised protocols with major buyers such as Japan, UAE and Saudi Arabia provide for restrictions only on shipments from the affected state and, eventually, just the municipality in question.
The outbreak occurred in the city of Montenegro in Brazil’s southernmost state of Rio Grande do Sul, the farm ministry said. The state accounts for 15% of Brazilian poultry production and exports, national pork and poultry group ABPA said in July 2024.
BRF has five processing plants operating in the state. JBS has also invested in local chicken processing plants under its Seara brand.
State officials said the outbreak of H5N1 bird flu is already responsible for the death of 17,000 farm chickens, either directly from the disease or due to cautionary culling.
Veterinary officials are isolating the area of the outbreak in Montenegro and hunting for more cases in an initial 10 km (6 miles) radius, the state agricultural secretariat said.
Favaro, the farm minister, said Brazil was working to contain the outbreak and negotiate a loosening of trade restrictions faster than the two months agreed in protocols.
“We can calm the market and consumers, showing that other parts of the country have no risk of outbreak … and with that, get some flexibility from those countries with a total ban,” he said in a telephone interview.
Brazil, which exported more than 5 million metric tons of chicken products last year, first confirmed outbreaks of the highly pathogenic avian flu among wild birds in May 2023, but had not registered a case on a commercial farm until Friday.
Chicken products shipped by Thursday will not be affected by any trade restrictions, the minister said.
Story courtesy of Reuters
