Chicken meat exports to Arab countries maintain stable revenue despite bird flu outbreak

Despite the bird flu outbreak recorded in Rio Grande do Sul in May, Brazil's revenue from chicken meat exports to Arab countries in the first half of this year practically equaled the same period in 2024. According to data compiled by the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, sales reached US$1.75 billion in the first half of the year, a decline of only US$0.53 billion.

In material released by its press office, the institution states, however, that the focus has even offset the approximately 10% increase in sales observed in the first four months of the year. However, the half-year results indicate that Arab markets, with the resumption of shipments in June, continue to experience strong demand and their importers maintain long-term contracts with Brazilian meatpackers.

"We are currently seeing good shipment levels, and we attribute this to the resumption of relations and the trust that exists between Brazilian meatpacking plants and their Arab partners. Situations like the avian flu outbreak in Rio Grande do Sul have already occurred and have not hindered the resumption of sales, as Brazil has a high level of credibility in the Arab world regarding its health standards, producing with quality and exporting responsibly," said Mohamad Mourad, secretary general and vice president of International Relations of the Arab Brazilian Chamber, in a statement released by the institution.

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The leader believes that the recent case of avian flu reported at a subsistence farm in Ceará should not have an immediate impact on exports to Arab countries. Most of the supply to the bloc of nations comes from farms in southern Brazil, thousands of kilometers from the outbreak. The outbreak in Rio Grande do Sul has already been resolved, and Brazil has regained its avian flu-free health status.

Among Arab countries, only Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Qatar still have some kind of restriction on Brazilian meat. Saudi Arabia and Oman restrict chicken purchases only from Rio Grande do Sul. Qatar has imposed restrictions on Montenegro, the source of the outbreak. The other Arab countries that had previously suspended or restricted purchases from Brazil have already lifted them. Kuwait and Bahrain were the countries that did so most recently, according to data from the Brazilian Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock.

According to Mourad, the Arab Chamber is updating the existing Arab diplomatic representations in Brazil and the governments of the bloc that contacted the entity with official information about the Ceará focus, following the same action in the Rio Grande do Sul episode to favor the resumption of shipments.