April 12, 2006

Bird flu cuts Brazilian poultry exports by 50,000 tonnes a month
 

Brazil has been losing the chance to export 50,000 tonnes of chicken a month, largely due to bird flu in Europe, according to Erico Antonio Pozzer, vice-president for the southeast region of the Brazilian Poultry Union (UBA).

Reduced demand has forced Brazilian poultry breeders to cut production by 20-25 percent.

Brazil exported 250,000 tonnes of chicken monthly in the last four months of last year while exports have stagnated at around 200,000 tonnes for the first 3 months of this year.

The Brazilian government last week announced a National Plan for the Prevention of Avian Influenza and the Control and Prevention of Newcastle Disease to limit the effects of diseases on the agricultural industry. 

A key feature of the plan is to monitor the arrival of the bird flu virus if it occurs and outline procedures in the event of a large-scale outbreak.