UK enters Japanese poultry market

And now, the UK is entering the Japanese market thanks to a new market access deal that the industry estimates could be worth £10 million over the next 5 years.

A deal was secured 2 years ago but due to avian influenza outbreaks, restrictions until now have limited trade. The latest agreement enables smoother trade of cooked poultry meat.

Japan is also a valuable market for UK breeding poultry, with a further market access agreement secured in recent weeks. The agreement ensures that any future avian influenza outbreaks only lead to temporary restrictions on exports from affected areas, rather than a countrywide ban. The deal will allow Japanese companies to continue to have access to UK high-grade stock.

Richard Griffiths, British Poultry Council chief executive: “We thank the Defra market access team and all government officials involved for securing exciting opportunities for BPC members, putting food on every table round the world despite the big challenges at hand, including successful negotiations of regionalisation for highly pathogenic avian influenza.”

Moy Park, one of the UK’s largest poultry meat producers, is the first to be officially registered to export cooked poultry to Japan from its base in Grantham, Lincolnshire, following a visit by Japanese inspectors in March.

Beatriz Curran, international business development manager at Moy Park, said she was confident that the company could grow the export opportunity even further across its facilities.