SINGAPORE: Singapore does not import poultry or poultry products from the establishment affected by a bird flu outbreak in Brazil, said the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) and the Animal & Veterinary Service (AVS) in a joint statement on Monday (May 19).
This comes after Brazil, the world's largest chicken exporter, confirmed its first outbreak of bird flu on a poultry farm, triggering suspension of imports of poultry meat from the area by Japan and and a countrywide trade ban of chicken imports by top buyer China.
Singapore also has bird flu "regionalisation arrangements" with Brazil, said SFA and AVS.
"Under such arrangements, in response to food safety concerns, imports from affected establishments and those within a buffer zone may be suspended while those imports from unaffected areas outside the buffer zone can continue."
The authorities added that Singapore's overall supply of poultry is "currently stable", but that the country can expect supply fluctuations from time to time due to disease outbreaks and supply disruptions.
Brazil is one of Singapore's top sources of poultry, but Singapore's supply is also "well-diversified" with 30 accredited sources, including countries such as Indonesia, Thailand, Denmark and Malaysia, said the authorities.
Singapore imports 48 per cent of poultry from the South American country, according to figures from 2021.
SFA also works with the industry to accredit new poultry sources that meet Singapore's food safety requirements.
"Source diversification remains a key food security strategy for Singapore. Diversification reduces the impact of disruption from any single source as our importers can turn to alternative sources quickly to stabilise our food supply," said SFA and AVS.
"If there are supply disruptions from any source, we will work with the industry to increase chilled and frozen chicken supply from other sources if necessary."
The authorities also encouraged consumers to be flexible with their food options when supply disruptions occur.
In response to CNA's queries, FairPrice said on Monday that it is currently not impacted by the bird flu outbreak in Brazil, and encouraged customers not to stockpile poultry as it has ample stocks in its warehouses.
"Global supply chain disruptions have become a more common occurrence in recent years, which is why we are always exploring new partnerships and solutions to further diversify and strengthen our supply chain, and stay ahead of potential disruption," said a FairPrice Group spokesperson.
A Sheng Siong spokesperson said that Brazil is one of its primary sources for frozen poultry. It added that it will work closely with suppliers to monitor the situation and take guidance from SFA.
Brazil, the world’s largest chicken exporter, confirmed the outbreak on Friday, triggering bans in several countries.
Major importers such as China, the European Union and South Korea have banned poultry imports from Brazil for 60 days, Brazilian Agriculture Minister Carlos Favaro said on Friday.
Japan suspended poultry meat imports from Montenegro and live poultry from the wider state of Rio Grande do Sul.
Brazilian authorities at the state and federal levels have scrambled to prevent the disease from spreading.
Brazil's agriculture ministry and Rio Grande do Sul's department of agriculture created a task force in Montenegro to prevent the virus from spreading, with officials visiting 524 properties within a 10km radius of the farm where the first case was found.
On Saturday, the government of Minas Gerais state said it destroyed 450 metric tons of eggs from Rio Grande do Sul.
Eggs from the affected farm were traced to locations in Minas Gerais, Parana and Rio Grande do Sul and will be destroyed, said the agriculture ministry.
The virus killed around 15,000 birds and the farm culled an additional 2,000. On Saturday, teams from Vibra Foods buried waste that had first been incinerated to prevent the spread of the virus.
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This comes after Brazil, the world's largest chicken exporter, confirmed its first outbreak of bird flu on a poultry farm, triggering suspension of imports of poultry meat from the area by Japan and and a countrywide trade ban of chicken imports by top buyer China.
Singapore also has bird flu "regionalisation arrangements" with Brazil, said SFA and AVS.
"Under such arrangements, in response to food safety concerns, imports from affected establishments and those within a buffer zone may be suspended while those imports from unaffected areas outside the buffer zone can continue."
The authorities added that Singapore's overall supply of poultry is "currently stable", but that the country can expect supply fluctuations from time to time due to disease outbreaks and supply disruptions.
Brazil is one of Singapore's top sources of poultry, but Singapore's supply is also "well-diversified" with 30 accredited sources, including countries such as Indonesia, Thailand, Denmark and Malaysia, said the authorities.
Singapore imports 48 per cent of poultry from the South American country, according to figures from 2021.
SFA also works with the industry to accredit new poultry sources that meet Singapore's food safety requirements.
"Source diversification remains a key food security strategy for Singapore. Diversification reduces the impact of disruption from any single source as our importers can turn to alternative sources quickly to stabilise our food supply," said SFA and AVS.
"If there are supply disruptions from any source, we will work with the industry to increase chilled and frozen chicken supply from other sources if necessary."
The authorities also encouraged consumers to be flexible with their food options when supply disruptions occur.
In response to CNA's queries, FairPrice said on Monday that it is currently not impacted by the bird flu outbreak in Brazil, and encouraged customers not to stockpile poultry as it has ample stocks in its warehouses.
"Global supply chain disruptions have become a more common occurrence in recent years, which is why we are always exploring new partnerships and solutions to further diversify and strengthen our supply chain, and stay ahead of potential disruption," said a FairPrice Group spokesperson.
A Sheng Siong spokesperson said that Brazil is one of its primary sources for frozen poultry. It added that it will work closely with suppliers to monitor the situation and take guidance from SFA.
COUNTRIES BAN BRAZILIAN CHICKEN
Brazil, the world’s largest chicken exporter, confirmed the outbreak on Friday, triggering bans in several countries.
Major importers such as China, the European Union and South Korea have banned poultry imports from Brazil for 60 days, Brazilian Agriculture Minister Carlos Favaro said on Friday.
Japan suspended poultry meat imports from Montenegro and live poultry from the wider state of Rio Grande do Sul.
Brazilian authorities at the state and federal levels have scrambled to prevent the disease from spreading.
Brazil's agriculture ministry and Rio Grande do Sul's department of agriculture created a task force in Montenegro to prevent the virus from spreading, with officials visiting 524 properties within a 10km radius of the farm where the first case was found.
On Saturday, the government of Minas Gerais state said it destroyed 450 metric tons of eggs from Rio Grande do Sul.
Eggs from the affected farm were traced to locations in Minas Gerais, Parana and Rio Grande do Sul and will be destroyed, said the agriculture ministry.
The virus killed around 15,000 birds and the farm culled an additional 2,000. On Saturday, teams from Vibra Foods buried waste that had first been incinerated to prevent the spread of the virus.
Continue reading...