US turkey exports to China resuming, but somewhat slowly

Now that the China is again accepting poultry shipments from the United States, about one third of China’s turkey imports come from the U.S.

Roy Graber Headshot
(Budabar | Bigstock)
(Budabar | Bigstock)

Now that the China is again accepting poultry shipments from the United States, about one third of China’s turkey imports come from the U.S.

However, that amount is still relatively small. That is something the USA Poultry and Egg Export Council (USAPEEC) is determined to change.

Speaking during the USAPEEC 2020 Virtual Annual Meeting on June 10, Sarah Li, USAPEEC’s regional director based in Hong Kong, highlighted some of recent trends related to turkey trade between the two countries.

During the first four months of 2020, China accepted about 5,976 tons of turkey imports. If that pace were to continue through the rest of the year, China’s turkey imports would be slightly ahead of its 2019 total of 15,497 tons.

This is an opportunity for the United States, which only recently gained access to the Chinese market. A trade barrier that was implemented in 2015 over avian influenza concerns was finally lifted in February. Poland – at least for now – can no longer ship poultry to China, also due to avian influenza concerns, leaving the U.S. one of only three countries with clearance to export turkey to China. The other two are Chile and Russia.

Following the 2015 ban on U.S. poultry to China, Chile became China’s top foreign supplier. The U.S. is regaining some share, having provided about a third of China’s turkey imports from January to April 2020 at 1,919 tons.

That is a much smaller slice of the pie compared to 2014, when the U.S. provided about 26,100 tons of turkey products to China, whereas the only other country to ship turkey to China that year was Chile, which exported 2,100 tons.

Li said “it will probably take some time,” before we see U.S. turkey shipments to China reach or surpass the levels that were seen before the 2015 ban was implemented.

Demand for turkey in China limited

In recent history, the majority of all turkey products exported to China have came in the form of drumsticks, two-joint wings and wing tips, Li said.

Presently, there is not a great deal of interest in processed turkey products in China, she explained.

“Tastes are a little different,” said Li. “Most Chinese processors would rather use it as a raw material, rather than importing the processed items.”

She also added that for the near term, most of the turkey products being sent to China are wings and wing tips, because drumsticks are more of a seasonal item that are more popular during the winter months.

Despite those demand limitations, Li said, “USAPEEC will continue to develop the potential use of turkey meat in China’s meat processing and fast frozen food industries.”

Impact of COVID-19 on turkey demand

Li said due to the COVID-19 pandemic, turkey demand in China has been stifled.

“I think the pandemic has redirected the economy down a lot,” she said.

But it is not just Chinese demand for turkey that is low, she said.

“Given the current market situation in China, actually none of the meat products are doing well in China right now,” Li said, specifically mentioning that the pork, chicken and duck meat demand is also not what it usually is.

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