The dynamics of the poultry trade between the United States and South Africa are under renewed scrutiny about potential changes to current import duties. At the centre of the debate are anti-dumping duties on frozen bone-in chicken portions, which have long been a protective measure for South African poultry producers.
In a response to Food For Mzansi, Fairplay said these duties target specific cuts such as leg quarters, drumsticks, thighs and wing products that have historically inflicted the most damage on the domestic market. These imports have had the most damaging impact on the domestic poultry sector, leading to reduced production, the shutdown of businesses, and the loss of thousands of jobs across the country.
Fairplay said as a result, South Africa has imposed anti-dumping duties on poultry producers in nine countries, Brazil, the United Kingdom, the United States, Belgium, Denmark, Ireland, Germany, Poland and Spain.
Drop in US poultry imports
“If these duties were relaxed or removed, the impact would be zero, because in recent years all bone-in chicken imports from the US have been free of anti-dumping duties,” Fairplay said.
Fairplay explained that although the anti-dumping duty exists on paper, it’s not currently applied to most US chicken imports because of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa).
This is because in 2016, the US negotiated a duty-free quota, meaning it can export up to approximately 72 000 tonnes of bone-in chicken without paying anti-dumping duties.
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FairPlay highlighted that, in addition to anti-dumping duties, the United States faces general tariffs on its poultry exports to South Africa. These include levies of 31% on chicken carcasses, 82% on whole frozen birds, 42% on frozen boneless cuts, 30% on offals, and 62% on frozen bone-in portions, tariffs which were increased from 13 March 2020.
Currently, Fairplay noted that easing or eliminating these tariffs would have little effect due to the sharp drop in US poultry imports.
“Should these outbreaks subside, and chicken imports climb back up to previous levels, any removal or relaxation of duties would once again harm local chicken producers and threaten local jobs.”
Impact on SA poultry industry
South African Poultry Association chief executive officer Izaak Breitenbach concurred, citing health and safety issues as the primary reason for the import shortfall.
“They have always utilised the quota in full, but during the last two years, HPAI [highly pathogenic avian influenza] impacted their ability to export to South Africa. In February 2025, South Africa received no imports of bone in portions from the US due to HPAI.
“The Agoa agreement reads that should South Africa lose any Agoa benefits, the tariff-free quota expires automatically. The tariffs announced by the US thus nullify the anti-dumping free quota of 72 000 tonnes of imports of poultry meat to South Africa, in our understanding. The industry [has] written to both ITAC [International Trade Administration Commission] and DTIC [department of trade, industry and competition] to make them aware of the above and ask for the quota to be removed,” he said.
For now, Breitenbach noted that the impact on local prices and supply appears minimal. “Local production has made up the drop in imports in full and averted price increases relating to that. The industry is still in the long run producing affordable chicken for the masses with price at present on the low side. Still, the threat of a future rebound in US poultry imports looms large,” he said.
For small-scale and commercialising farmers, the stakes are even higher. Limpopo poultry farmer Frans Matukela said the removal of any protective measures would significantly set back their progress.
“We will not be able to reach the commercial market as we are pushing to get there. If the government allows that, we will not [be] able to sustain ourselves, our economy will also not grow,” Matukela said.
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