South Africa’s poultry sector eyes EU market amid significant hurdles

SOUTH AFRICA – South Africa’s aspiration to become a leading chicken exporter to the European Union (EU) faces numerous challenges, despite the enticing opportunity presented by the EU’s substantial annual deficit of approximately one million tons of chicken breast meat.

This shortfall could be a lucrative market for South African poultry producers, but they must first navigate through a maze of obstacles including inadequate government support, stringent regulatory requirements, and a lack of qualified professionals.

Donald Mackay, a prominent advocate for boosting exports, highlights the severe chicken shortage within the EU.

He believes South Africa is in a prime position to meet this demand but criticizes the government’s sluggish progress in facilitating market access.

However, the EU’s rigorous standards require significant government intervention to ensure compliance.

Izaak Breitenbach from the South African Poultry Association underscores the necessity for robust biosecurity measures and legislation to meet these exacting standards, noting that the current deficit of veterinarians in the country poses a significant barrier to achieving compliance.

Despite these hurdles, the South African poultry industry remains active.

It currently exports over 50,000 tons of frozen chicken to neighboring countries each month, demonstrating its production capabilities.

On a year-to-year basis, data from the South African Revenue Service (SARS) reveals that South Africa imported 80,424 tons of chicken meat in the third quarter of 2023, a 22.1% decrease from the 103,211 tons imported during the same period in 2022.

The Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) of the United Nations reports that the average international poultry meat price index dropped by 2.97% in the third quarter of 2023, standing at 115.20 points compared to 118.72 points in the second quarter.

Domestically, the third quarter saw a notable decline in chicken imports, driven by significant drops in boneless chicken (74%), frozen chicken wings (52%), other chicken products (46%), value-added processed chicken (42%), and frozen chicken livers (19%).

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