Bird flu: Government lifts ban on most chicken imports from Brazil
South Africa is set to allow chicken imports from Brazilian states that do not have cases of avian influenza, commonly known as bird flu. An outbreak of the disease in one state of Brazil saw a blanket ban being imposed by South Africa, which left many fearing the consequences.
The poultry industry was left divided by the ban. Others continuously put pressure on the Department of Agriculture to partially lift the ban, while others kept reassuring the public that there is no need to worry about a chicken shortage, as local producers can make up for the gap.
However, the department has succumbed to the pressure and partially lifted the ban from Thursday, 19 June 2025.
Chicken from Brazil allowed in SA
In a statement shared with The Citizen, the department said the decision to partially lift the import ban on poultry came after it received a second report from Brazil's Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, detailing how Brazil contained the outbreak to one state.
'This partial lift may be withdrawn should the outbreak be found to have extended to other states within Brazil.'
Brazil accounts for most of the chicken sold to South Africans. Had the ban lasted longer, it might have resulted in a chicken shortage and higher prices.
ALSO READ: Bird flu brings foul times: Chicken shortage and price hike loom in South Africa
Brazil is the largest importer of chicken
The Department of Agriculture added that it will be joining other countries in partially lifting the ban on poultry imports, as Brazil exports to countries other than South Africa.
The veterinary services of the department engaged with their Brazilian counterparts to determine the extent of the outbreak, the steps taken to contain it, and whether there were any other outbreaks on other farms or in other states.
'We are glad that a month after the outbreak was reported in Brazil, we have been able to assess and confirm that risks associated with the importation of poultry and poultry products from Brazil are insignificant. We are closely monitoring the situation,' added Minister of Agriculture John Steenhuisen.
Safe to eat chicken from Brazil
Georg Southey, Manager of Merlog Foods, told The Citizen the lifting of the ban does not pose a risk of introducing bird flu into the country.
'The agreement is based on a regionalisation approach, meaning imports will only come from Brazilian states (provinces) not affected by the outbreak. The outbreak occurred in just one state, Rio Grande do Sul, and imports from that area remain suspended.
'The next step is to update the relevant health certificates through the World Organisation for Animal Health. Once finalised, trade can resume safely with approved states. This is a sensible and science-led step to protect both public health and national food security.'
100 million meals per week lost
He added that the decision to partially lift the ban comes at a perfect time, as South Africa has been losing more than 100 million meals per week since the ban was imposed.
'Brazil supplies 95% of our mechanically deboned meat (MDM), a key ingredient in everyday staples like polony, viennas, and sausages. These affordable proteins are essential to school feeding schemes and low-income families, and no other country could fill the gap,' added Southey.
He emphasised that speed is crucial when it comes to food security. 'There are clear lessons to be learned from the time it took to lift the ban – lessons we must apply to expedite future decisions in similar crises.'
ALSO READ: Will SA run out of beef and chicken? Animal disease hits SA's top producer — what it means for consumers
'Not out of the woods yet'
Arnold Prinsloo, CEO of Eskort, told The Citizen that they welcome the speedy response from the government, but 'we are by no means out of the woods yet'.
Eskort makes use of the MDM from Brazil to make polony, viennas, russians and braaiwors. He previously stated that the blanket ban on Brazilian imports would put production lines to a standstill before the end of June.
'Although the Department of Agriculture has agreed to a partial lifting of the suspension, the process is as follows: Brazil has to send a certificate to the government, and together they need to agree on the legalities and wording,' added Prinsloo.
'Once that certificate is in place, we can only then place orders to Brazil. Production has been halted in Brazil, resulting in a two-week lead time for production.
'Those orders will take six weeks to get here, and then one to two weeks to clear customs. Thus, there will still be an impact on consumers, businesses and food security at large.'
Jobs safe
The South African Meat Processors Association (SAMPA) also joined others in welcoming the news of the partial ban on Brazilian imports.
Gordon Nicoll, chairperson of SAMPA, highlighted that the partial ban will help the manufacturing sector retain the hundreds of thousands of jobs reliant on imports of MDM. Prinsloo had previously warned that the ban would lead to job losses.
'We are grateful for the urgency displayed by the National Department of Agriculture in averting the full-scale social and humanitarian crisis which the ban imposed on 16 May threatened to unleash.
'While it will take some time for imports of MDM to reach our shores, the situation could have been a lot worse. We hope that this crisis will provide the blueprint for South African authorities should the remaining two poultry-producing regions of Brazil report HPAI outbreaks, so we can avoid any other breaks in supply in future,' added Nicoll.
Local producers can fill the gap
The South African Poultry Association (Sapa) was the only organisation that held the view that the blanket ban on chicken imports from Brazil would not cause a shortage.
Izaak Breitenbach, CEO of Sapa's Broiler Organisation, said local producers can make up for the gap created by the ban, and highlighted that poultry products are not widely eaten during winter.
'We are currently producing about 21.5 million chickens per week, and the industry has the capacity to increase this by about another million birds per week.'
The Citizen had not received a comment from Sapa about the partial lifting of the ban by the time of publishing.
NOW READ: Bird flu: worry not, it is safe to eat eggs and chicken
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