South Africa replaces USA in second place in global poultry production – USDA

USA – South Africa has moved ahead of the United States to become the world’s second most competitive poultry producer after Brazil, according to the latest Competitiveness report released by the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service.

The findings, highlighted by the Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP), show that although South Africa’s poultry production costs remain above those recorded in Brazil, they are now lower than those in the United States and considerably below costs in the three European countries included in the study.

The report assessed technical performance in broiler production using indicators such as feed conversion ratios, slaughter age and carcass weights, with South African producers recording the most efficient feed conversion ratio among all countries evaluated.

As a result, feed conversion efficiency in South Africa has improved by 14.1% over the past decade, allowing producers to use less feed for each kilogram of chicken meat produced than competitors in other major poultry-producing nations.

In addition, South Africa recorded the shortest production cycle among the countries examined, with broilers reaching market weight in an average of 31.5 days.

However, the shorter production period was associated with relatively lighter carcass weights, which averaged 1.77 kilograms at slaughter, despite a 4.5% increase over the past ten years.

By comparison, carcass weights in Brazil ranged between 1.9 kilograms and 2.5 kilograms, while birds processed in the United States averaged 2.95 kilograms.

Feed and day-old chick expenses account for more than 80% of poultry production costs in South Africa, reflecting a cost structure similar to that seen in other leading poultry-producing countries.

Feed remains the largest cost component, while BFAP said that ongoing growth in local soybean processing capacity could further reduce costs.

The report attributed South Africa’s improved competitive position to better feed utilisation and lower labour and processing expenses, which helped offset comparatively higher housing and input costs.

Despite its stronger ranking, South Africa’s poultry output remains far below that of the world’s largest producers, with the country producing 1.8 million tonnes of broiler meat in 2024 compared with 15 million tonnes in Brazil and 21 million tonnes in the United States.

Trade Protection Measures

South Africa currently applies a 62% most-favoured-nation tariff on imports of bone-in chicken portions and an 82% tariff on whole birds, while anti-dumping duties remain in place on poultry imports from the United States, Brazil, Denmark, Ireland, Poland, Spain, Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

The anti-dumping measures were introduced after domestic producers argued that imported poultry products were being sold at unfairly low prices, contributing to farm closures and employment losses within the local industry.

Following tariff increases introduced in 2020 and additional anti-dumping measures implemented in 2021 and 2023, major poultry companies have reported improved financial results despite the highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreak that disrupted the sector in 2023.

Rainbow Chicken reported earnings of US$41 million (R669.5 million) for the six months ended December 28, 2025, more than double the level recorded during the corresponding period after the company completed much of a turnaround programme launched in September 2023.

Meanwhile, Astral Foods reported revenue of US$1.38 billion (R22.6 billion) for the year ended September 30, 2025, while net profit increased 16% and operating profit climbed 10.9% to approximately US$76 million (R1.25 billion), supported by higher broiler sales volumes and stronger selling prices during the second half of the financial year.

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