December 21, 2023

 

Higher international poultry imports expected as 2023 nears end

 

 

Poultry meat imports are expected to end the year higher in the Philippines and other countries due to high demand for cheaper products, the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said.

 

"Increases in poultry meat imports are expected for China, Mexico, the European Union, Malaysia, Iraq and Saudi Arabia, as well as in the Republic of Korea, the Philippines and South Africa, due to high demand for lower-cost meat products and lively food services sales," the FAO said.

 

Poultry meat imports for Asia are expected to hit 8.07 million metric tonnes this year, higher by 1.71% from the 7.9 million million tonnes logged in 2022.

 

Exports of meat in the region, meanwhile, were forecast to drop by 2.65% to 3.3 million metric tonnes from last year's 3.39 million metric tonnes.

 

The FAO has said that global poultry meat trade could reach 16.3 million metric tonnes by end-2023, up by 0.7% from 16.18 million metric tonnes posted the previous year. In terms of poultry meat output, it noted that the global tally could reach 142 million tonnes this year, growing by a slower 1% compared to last year. The agency said it was "underpinned by higher input costs and widespread highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) or bird flu outbreaks."

 

"Moreover, increased white broiler chicken prices in early 2023 led profit margins to rise despite the continued high feed costs, lifting production by 4% in the first nine months of 2023," the FAO said.

 

The Philippines' overall meat production for 2023 is estimated to hit 2.96 million metric tonnes, 2.6% higher from the previous year's 2.8 million metric tonnes.

 

Overall meat imports are expected to drop by 8.07% in 2023 to 1.09 million metric tonnes from 1.18 million metric tonnes last year. This import contraction, as well as in other countries such as the United States, Angola, Japan and others, will weigh on the global meat trade.

 

Global trade in meat and meat products is expected to hit 41.4 million metric tonnes this year, down 0.8% from the 41.7 million metric tonnes posted in 2022.

 

- The Manila Times