For the first time in history, Ukraine has been approved to export poultry meat to Japan.
The Ukrainian state department of food safety announced on August 22 the two countries agreed on required veterinary certificates to make the trade possible, Reuters reported.
Presently, the three biggest buyers of Ukrainian poultry meat are Saudi Arabia, the Netherlands and Slovakia.
During the first six months of 2019, Ukraine exported about 211,000 metric tons of poultry.
MHP, the largest poultry company in Ukraine, has made exports a key part of its business growth in recent months.
According to the company’s consolidated management report for 2018, which was released on March 20, MHP exported 286,846 metric tons of chicken meat for the year, compared to 220,983 metric tons in 2017. The report also noted that the company’s total poultry sales increased by about 11% on a year-over-year basis to 593 metric tons. Its poultry sales in the Ukraine were stable when compared to the previous year.
“We continued to execute upon our strategy of diversification of sales,” MHP Chief Executive Officer Yuriy Kosyuk stated. “Poultry exports increased by 30% year-over-year and the number of countries to which we export our poultry increased from around 60 to over 80. Growing our international reach remains a strategic imperative for MHP.”
In addition to the country’s three largest export markets, MHP also identified Iraq as a significant importer of its poultry products.
Ukraine’s emergence as a meaningful exporter of poultry was brought to the attention to the U.S. poultry industry as long ago as 2013. During the U.S. Poultry & Egg Association (USPOULTRY) Financial Management Seminar that year, Peter Pawlenko of AJC International said with a rapidly growing pace of production, the broiler supply in Ukraine has also grown. The product that they have is very appealing to the developing countries in Europe, Asia and Africa that are looking to import more poultry, Pawlenko said.
