South Africa is investigating the alleged dumping of frozen whole chickens and boneless cuts from Brazil, said Thembinkosi Gamlashe, spokesman for the country’s International Trade Administration Commission.
The commission found “prima facie proof of injurious dumping,” Gamlashe said in an e-mail today. The investigation started in June and should be completed in nine to 12 months, he said.
Brazilian chicken exports to South Africa totaled $92 million in the first five months of the year, according to Ubabef, the South American country’s poultry industry association. The body has denied the allegation of selling chicken at below-market prices.
South Africa is expected to import 245,000 metric tons of chicken this year, according to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The country’s overall chicken consumption is expected to reach 1.53 million tons.
South Africans will eat on average 31.2 kilograms of chicken per person this year, up 1.3 percent from 2010, according to the USDA.
The allegation first emerged three years ago, initially aimed at all poultry exports from Brazil, and is now focused on some supplies, Ubabef President Francisco Turra said in a statement on June 28. The body is confident the claims of dumping will be proved untrue, he said.
Source: Bloomberg
