October 13, 2005

Indonesia will not import US and European chicken leg quarters

Indonesia's government said the country would not import US and European chicken leg quarters, despite rumors to the contrary.

Agriculture Minister Anton Aprijantono said domestic production was enough to meet demand, especially in light of possible excess supplies due to the recent bird flu outbreaks.

He added that the government was also unsure whether chickens slaughtered in the US and Europe were managed in a way acceptable under Islamic law. In addition, "the condition of our poultry breeders will become worse" if imported chicken leg quarters arrived to compete, as Indonesian poultry breeders were still trying to recover from bird flu losses.