Commodities
Bird Flu Hits Brazil, World's Top Chicken Exporter, for the First Time Ever
- Cases detected in two wild birds on Espirito Santo’s coast
- Exporter group says unlikely shipments will be curbed for now
Chickens eat at a poultry farm near Curitiba, Brazil.
Photographer: Orlando Kissner/AFP/Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
The virus that’s ravaged poultry flocks in the US and Europe has just hit Brazil, the world’s largest chicken exporter, for the first time ever.
Avian influenza was detected in two wild birds on the coast of Espirito Santo, a state in the nation’s southeast, according to a statement from Brazil’s Agriculture Ministry. The country is home to some of the world’s biggest poultry producers including BRF SA and JBS SA. Shares of both companies declined.