Earlier this month, the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform, and Rural Development (DALRRD) informed Post that imports of all poultry products from South Carolina are reauthorized, ending the five-month ban stemming from an outbreak of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza, according to USDA’s GAIN report.
The decision to lift the restrictions was made after a review of the outbreak, control, surveillance and eradication information, and in accordance with the agreed-upon protocol. DALRRD will commence issuing of veterinary import permits with immediate effect. The South Carolina poultry industry represents 40% of all agriculture in the state and accounts for 80% of animal agriculture.
The United States exports bone-in chicken to South Africa under an annual tariff rate quota (TRQ) system that is subject to conditional increases every year. The TRQ is exempt from an anti-dumping duty that applies to bone-in chicken imports once the quota has been filled. For the year 2020/2021 the quota was increased to 69,972 tons from 68,590 tons in 2019/2020. Over the past three years, U.S. bone-in chicken imports have filled the quota, signaling the considerable and consistent demand for the product in South Africa. Nonetheless, the recent increase of South Africa’s applied duties on bone-in chicken imports from 37 percent to 62 percent could impact the future utilization of the TRQ.
