Cheaper Chinese Chicken Exports Challenge Brazil in Global Market

China’s rising chicken production is pushing the country into an increasingly prominent position in the global poultry market. In 2027, China could become the world’s third-largest chicken exporter, overtaking the European Union. With prices below those of its competitors, Chinese chicken exports are already competing for customers with traditional suppliers such as Brazil.

Companies such as Lisbon-based meat trader Branexx have turned to Chinese products to serve customers seeking cheaper meat. Branexx Chairman Ezequiel Pires told Reuters that his company began buying chicken from China in March after African customers requested lower-cost alternatives to Brazilian poultry. According to Pires, Chinese chicken breast and leg quarters are 10% to 20% cheaper than comparable Brazilian products.

The Chinese government’s focus on food security has driven poultry production to grow faster than domestic consumption. The resulting oversupply is leading China to reduce imports — of which Brazil is the largest supplier — while increasing exports.

Data from Datamar provide a detailed view of Brazilian chicken meat exports to China. According to the company, Brazil shipped 29,372 TEUs of the product to the Asian market, up 57.7% from the previous year.

Chicken Meat Exports to China | Jan 2024 – Aug 2026 | TEUs

Source: DataLiner – explore our trade data

According to a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) report released this month, China’s chicken production is expected to grow 9% this year to 18 million tonnes. Domestic chicken consumption, meanwhile, is projected to increase 7.2% to 16.845 million tonnes.

The trend is expected to continue in 2027. The USDA forecasts a 5.5% increase in Chinese production to 19 million tonnes and a 3.7% rise in domestic consumption to 17.475 million tonnes. According to the agency, the expansion in supply is supported by a “sufficient” breeder flock, relatively stable corn and soybean meal prices, and investment in production capacity.

Chinese Chicken Exports Set to Climb Further in 2027

The surplus production is expected to allow China to increase its exports by 25% next year to 1.925 million tonnes. This year, the country is projected to export 1.540 million tonnes, up 42% from 2025, according to the USDA.

After ranking as the world’s fifth-largest chicken exporter in 2025, with an 8% share of global exports, China could move into fourth place this year and reach third place in 2027, overtaking the European Union.

The USDA identified “growing competition from China” as one of the challenges Brazil will face in 2027 in a report released last week. The agency warned that Brazilian exporters will need to offset lost sales to Europe resulting from antimicrobial-control rules.

Wintop Food, based in China’s Shandong province, has been seeing growing demand from overseas. The company, which processes 60 million chickens a year and sells chicken breast, nuggets and meatballs to more than 20 countries, generated half of its 2025 profits from exports, according to Reuters.

“International clients used to distrust the quality,” the company’s general manager, Dang Yangyang, told Reuters in August. “But when the meat is $1,000 cheaper per ton than Brazilian and Thai competitors, they have to either buy from China or lose out.”

Data from consultancy Gira cited by Reuters show that China has doubled its share of the European Union’s processed poultry market to 10% since 2022 and tripled its share in the United Kingdom to more than 14%.

“It’s very worrying,” Kukrit Arepagorn, manager of the Thai Broiler Processing Exporters Association, told Reuters. “Customers increasingly use cheap Chinese chicken prices as a reference point for negotiation.”

Source: Globo Rural

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