Various poultry groups, led by the United Broiler Raisers Association (UBRA), are urging the Department of Trade and Industry to suspend the lifting of the ban on Brazilian poultry imports that are suspected to be tainted with SARS-COV 2, the causative agent of new coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).
In an open letter, the groups said that DTI should allow Department of Agriculture’s (DA) procedures to be completed first before calling for the lifting of the ban.
The groups noted that “DA’s action is a big help in providing confidence to poultry products both local and imported.”
“The ban protects public health which should be the primordial concern. It also preserves public confidence in chicken as a product whether it is locally produced or imported from other countries. The ban benefits, therefore, the general public, producers, importers and even the processors,” the statement that was signed by both UBRA president Elias Jose Inciong and chairman Gregorio San Diego, read.
UBRA expressed that DTI should recall the scenario when consumer confidence on both local imported pork dwindled when the African swine fever (ASF) first hit the country.
The groups also criticized the Philippine Association of Meat Processors Inc.’s warning that the ban on Brazil may cause a shortage of raw materials and higher prices of canned foods products, citing that there are at least 9 other sources of mechanically deboned meat (MDM).
Meat processors warned of a 10 to 14-percent increase in the prices of canned meat products following the ban on imported poultry and mechanically-deboned materials MDM from Brazil.
“China is not a good place in terms of food security because of the damage wrought by ASF and the recent floods which ruined farms on a devastatingly grand scale. It needs as many food suppliers as possible to temper rising prices considering its conflict with the United States. Why would China, therefore, ban food products from Brazil if there is no possible threat to public health,” UBRA further explained.
Earlier this week, DA said the ban on chicken imports from Brazil stays even as various groups urged for a wider ban to include other countries.
The Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI) already asked Brazil’s Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply to submit various documents stating the status of its containment of COVID-19 on its poultry industry.
These include documents on COVID-19 prevention and control procedures in chicken processing facilities in Brazil as well as the infection rate in these facilities’ workers.
Such decision was supported by various agricultural stakeholders led by the Philippine Association of Feed Milers Inc. which said a wider ban is needed to assure the health of consumers.
“We jointly support the action of the DA to temporarily ban the importation of chicken from Brazil. Though we appreciate this move by the agriculture department as an effective preventive measure to ensure the safety of the Filipino people and the other nationals who reside in our country, we, as an industry urges government to have a more aggressive stand and move for the temporary banning of all imported chicken until the world is able to cross this pandemic,” the joint statement said.
Other groups which signed the statement are UBRA, Philippine Chamber of Agriculture and Food Inc., Pork Producers Federation of the Philippines, National Federation of Hog Farmers, Philippine Eggboard Association, Philippine Maize Federation, among others.
The groups said the local livestock and chicken industries can supply the meat processors.
