Brazil urges China, EU to withdraw poultry import bans

Top Brazilian government officials have entered into talks with China and the EU to regain access to key sales markets lost as a result of an avian influenza outbreak.

China is looking into lifting its ban on chicken meal from Brazil, imposed in May 2025 following an outbreak of avian influenza at a commercial poultry farm in the Rio Grande do Sul region, Brazilian Agriculture Minister Carlos Favaro outlined, speaking during the BRICS summit in Rio de Janeiro.

China took a strict stance on poultry imports from Brazil, unlike other key importers, including Japan, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, which prohibited imports only from the affected state.

Before the ban, Brazil accounted for nearly half of China’s chicken meat imports, estimated at 495,000 tonnes in 2024.

Favaro did not provide further details, stating only that President Lula da Silva is leading negotiations on behalf of Brazil.

In a separate statement on 11 July, the Brazilian Agricultural Ministry announced that Favaro recently held talks with EU officials to discuss the next steps for the withdrawal of restrictions imposed by the European Union on Brazilian chicken meat exports.

“It’s not about celebrating the crisis, but about recognising the opportunity we had to demonstrate the robustness of our health system,” Favaro said, as quoted in the government statement.

“We comply with all protocols, control the focus and, knowing the Brazilian and European health regulations and their equivalence, with the due particularities, I formally request the recognition, also by the European Union, of Brazil as a country free of avian flu. This is the main request of this meeting,” Favaro added.

The outbreak in Rio Grande do Sul was estimated to cost Brazil between 10% and 20% of its chicken exports, depending on how quickly it is contained and the stance key importers take, S&P Global Commodity Insights forecasted.

Despite initial fears of the virus spreading, Brazil managed to contain the epidemic. According to Rio Grande do Sul state’s agriculture department, Brazil is now free of the avian influenza virus. The 28-day countdown for reclaiming Brazil’s disease-free status began on 22 May 2025 and ended on 18 June 2025.

The Brazilian veterinary officials put a lot of effort into containing the spread of the disease, imposing tight control over the transportation of animals, animal products, and feed in the affected region.

Tags: outbreak, chicken meat, markets, Avian influenza, chicken meal, China, exports, Brazil, EU, Poultry, imports