THE Department of Agriculture (DA) said on Thursday, July 3, 2025, chicken prices may decline with the lifting of the import ban on domestic and wild birds, as well as poultry meat products from two countries.
This comes after Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel Jr. signed Memorandum Orders No. 34 and 32 lifting the temporary import ban on poultry products from Brazil and six states in the United States, respectively.
In a phone interview, DA spokesperson Assistant Secretary Arnel de Mesa said this will help ease supply pressures and lower retail prices of chicken.
“That’s a big help because Brazil is one of the main sources of our livestock and poultry products,” he said in a mix of Tagalog and English.
As of June 18, all reported cases of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) or bird flu in Brazil have already been resolved, with no additional outbreaks logged, according to the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH).
De Mesa, meanwhile, said consumers may start to feel its impact on retail prices this month, July.
“The entry of imported goods from Brazil will come immediately. So, it will be felt immediately,” he said.
As of Wednesday, July 2 the price of a whole chicken in Metro Manila is between P220 and P250 per kilo, according to DA-Bantay Presyo.
For US states, the DA approved the country’s importation from Indiana, Maryland, Missouri, New York, Ohio, and Pennsylvania after the WOAH confirmed that no new HPAI cases have been recorded in these states since June 9.
Under the orders, importers can now source live poultry, poultry meat, day-old chicks, eggs, and semen from Brazil and the six US states. / PNA