Philippines bans poultry imports from Brazil amid bird flu outbreak

MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Agriculture (DA) has officially banned the importation of poultry products from Brazil amid the bird flu outbreak in the South American country.

On May 19, the DA issued Memorandum Order No. 25 imposing a temporary ban on importing domestic and wild birds and their products, including poultry meat, day-old chicks, eggs and semen from Brazil effective immediately.

“There is a need to prevent the entry of HPAI virus to protect the health of the local poultry population,” stated the order.

READ: Philippine to ban poultry imports from Brazil

The ban excludes Brazil’s products that had already been in transit, loaded or accepted unto port before the Philippine government transmitted an official copy of the order to Brazilian authorities. This is provided that the products had been slaughtered or produced on or before April 28.

The DA enforced the import ban more than a week after Brazil had informed the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) of an avian influenza affecting domestic birds in Montenegro, a municipality in Rio Grande do Sul.

A Reuters report said Brazil had confirmed its first avian influenza outbreak in the southern part of the country.

Impact on local market

READ: First PH case of new bird flu strain detected in Camarines Sur

Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. said earlier that barring poultry imports from Brazil would have a short-term impact on supply and prices of chicken. But he said it would not cause any issue in the long run, noting that importers have alternative suppliers.

The latest move drew mixed reactions from industry groups.

Philippine Association of Meat Processors Inc. (Pampi) director Jet Ambalada said they were not expecting any supply gap as manufacturers usually keep a month’s inventory or more and other suppliers such as Poland have competitive offers.

However, Meat Importers and Traders Association president emeritus Jesus Cham said a country-wide ban on Brazil's poultry imports might affect prices of certain food products as they mainly source mechanically deboned chicken (MDM) or mechanically separated meat (MSM) from Brazil.

MDM and MSM are materials used in manufacturing various food products such as hotdogs and sausages.

Brazil is the leading exporter of meat to the Philippines, accounting for 43.5 percent of the overall volume as of March, primarily pork and chicken, data from the Bureau of Animal Industry showed.

The same Reuters report said Brazil accounted for 35 percent of the worldwide chicken trade, with last year’s poultry shipments totaling $10 billion in 2024.

(2025/05/22-18:01)