August 14, 2024

 

What fuels the strong rebound of China's GPS broiler breeder volume in 2023?

In 2023, China's total broiler chicken release volume reached 13,022 million birds, an increase of 1,165 million or 9.83% from 2022.

 

Among them, the release volume of white-feather broilers was 7,195 million, an 18.14% rise compared with 2022. The market share of white-feather broiler chickens has also expanded to 55.25%. The record output of these birds was due to the expansion of grandparent stock (GPS) broiler breeders.

 

The latest data from the China Animal Husbandry Association shows that the number of GPS white-feather broilers in China in 2023 totalled 1.2799 million sets, a surge of 32.85% from 2022.

 

One factor linked to the rapid recovery of China's GPS broiler breeder numbers is the passing of the COVID pandemic.

 

Since 2021, the import of GPS broiler breeders from New Zealand stalled as chicken diseases were detected at the Chinese customs. China then turned to the United States for GPS broiler breeders. However, in April 2022, due to tight flight schedules and COVID lockdowns in China, these birds could not be delivered as planned.

 

Still, in 2023, despite the prolonged impact of avian influenza in the global poultry market, China's import volumes of certain GPS species surged to 451,000 sets from 310,900 in 2022.

 

The second factor is the strategic moves of Chinese domestic enterprises.

 

Since 2019, the farms of Fujian Sunner only produced its own white-feather broiler species, the Shengze 901. Sunner's Shengze 901 GPS breeder accounts for about 10% of China's broiler breeder market. By 2023, exports of Shengze 901 were equivalent to Sunner's own consumption volume.

 

The third factor concerns actions by the Chinese government.

 

In December 2021, China approved three domestic white-feather broiler breeds (which includes Shengze 901), hinting at the country's self-sufficiency in producing white-feather GPS broiler chickens. The approvals helped the Chinese GPS broiler breeder market expand swiftly last year amid an import shortage.

 

In 2023, China's domestic GPS breeds accounted for over 40% of the market share of its GPS breeder market.

 

Hence, the country's domestic species can guarantee sufficient, local supplies of white-feather broiler chickens, ensuring the stability of the broiler industry, which can be affected by the inconsistency of GPS breeder imports.

 

The market share of domestic species of white-feather breeders will continue to rise, potentially exceeding that of imported varieties in the future.

- Shi Tao, eFeedLink