Chicken exports affected

Kevin Lovell, CEO of the South African Poultry Association (SAPA), told FTW that while chickens had not been affected by the bird flu virus, it had affected poultry producers’ potential to export. “It requires the establishment of compartments (and epidemiological system) which adds cost and complexity to production systems.” Lovell noted that SAPA was working with government to try to distinguish the chicken industry from the ostrich outbreaks. “This is not that easy as both qualify as poultry in terms of the World Organisation for Animal Health definitions,” he said.