MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Chile and Saudi Arabia resume Brazilian chicken imports

So far, 41 countries have resumed purchases from the South American country following this year's detection in southern Brazil

According to Brazil's Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, Chile and Saudi Arabia have lifted all restrictions on the purchase of chicken meat, it was announced in Brasilia on Monday.

These two countries had suspended imports due to a case of avian influenza at a commercial farm in the municipality of Montenegro (RS). On June 18, Brazil declared itself free of the disease after disinfecting the affected farm and not registering any other cases for a period of 28 days.

Also Monday, Chile stopped purchases from Argentina for the same sanitary reasons.

Namibia and North Macedonia have also resumed imports. In total, 41 countries have already lifted the embargo, Agencia Brasil also pointed out.

Meanwhile, Canada, China, Malaysia, Pakistan, East Timor, and the European Union still maintain an embargo on imports of Brazilian poultry meat.

Avian flu H5N1 has infected over 900 people globally since 1997, with a fatality rate exceeding 50%. Human infections typically occur through direct contact with infected birds or contaminated environments. So far, sustained human-to-human transmission has not occurred, but the potential remains a concern.

Migratory birds play a key role in spreading the virus across continents. International agencies like WHO, FAO, and OIE coordinate surveillance, containment, and vaccination strategies. Technological advances, including AI and modeling, are now used to forecast outbreaks and detect hotspots.