The year 2019 was a tough year for the Chinese protein industry because it suffered great losses due to wide outspread of Africa Swine Fever, resulted in record-high prices of pig and shift of consumer to poultry. The shift in protein preference of Chinese consumers towards poultry forced and changed the Russian goal of delivering 1 million tons of pork into increase chicken supply. In the same year, after the ban of five years, US poultry was given access to the Chinese markets.
According to Russian media reports, during the first 10 months of 2019, Russia exported 30,000 tons of chicken to China with the total value of 85 million dollars (about 596 million Yuan) and in October alone these exports mounted to 10,000 tons of chicken products to China. According to an estimate that the scale of Russian chicken imported in the whole year of 2019 has reached approximately 55,000tons. Apart, from that Russia is also planning on expanding rail transportation to increase its poultry and poultry product supply to China. The Russian chicken producer Cherkizovo Group is planning to increase its export to 150 to 180 million chickens to China in 2020.
China has always been higher poultry consumption in the world but due to insufficient pork supply in 2019, the poultry consumption increased sharply. The statistic also proves the sharp increase in the poultry imports as in nearly 5 years Chinese chicken imports remained at 40 to 50 million tons, while in 2019 only during first six months the chicken imports reach to 35 million tons, which can be related to the surge in the demand for chicken. Based on the USDA forecast, China is on the verge of becoming the world's sixth-largest chicken meat importer, after Japan, the European Union, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia. The Chinese poultry market has a huge place for imported chicken and fierce competition.
Impact of High imports on Chinese poultry industry:
The Chinese poultry sector has experienced vigorous growth over the past two decades, despite the trade restrictions and bird epidemics. Poultry production in the country has increased its share of China's total livestock production. The poultry sector is no longer dominated by smallholder rather it has become a commercial business mostly owned by large domestic and international enterprises. According to market experts, the high poultry imports in current scenario is due to high demand created by the shift of Chinese consumer from pig to chicken and therefore it will not harm the domestic poultry industry is currently the domestic poultry producers are not able to cover the demand and they highly covet their overseas market access and will endeavor to maintain their market share, even if it does so at a loss.