Thailand and Brazil have called for the European Union to set a higher quota for chicken imports this year. The EU wants to calculate its chicken quota based on the most favoured nation principle, which combines export statistics for all countries.
Thailand and Brazil want the quota based on country-specific export statistics.
A Commerce Ministry source said: "The same export quota volume is not fair for Thailand as we are one of the leading chicken suppliers to the EU market."
Thailand ships more chicken meat to the EU than any other country. China and Chile, which are Thailand's rivals, will be the big winners from the new allocation system if the EU refuses to use the country-specific system, the source said.
The EU's processed chicken quota for Thailand is 160,033 tonnes. The EU, at 40 per cent, is the largest export market for Thai chicken.
Thai and Brazilian chicken exporters would soon send a letter to the European Commission asking it to consider calculating the chicken quota based on each individual country's export statistics.
Source: Thai newspaper The Nation
