South Africa’s planned removal from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) has opened a fresh opportunity for local poultry producers to challenge a long-standing arrangement allowing American chicken portions to enter the country under preferential duty concessions. The industry wants the government to reconsider the agreement as the trade benefits that originally accompanied it are set to end.
The dispute centres on an annual import quota of approximately 74,000 tonnes of frozen bone-in chicken from the United States. The arrangement was introduced in 2015 as part of negotiations linked to South Africa’s participation in AGOA, under which qualifying African countries received preferential access to the American market.
In return, South Africa granted a quota allowing specified US chicken imports to enter without the anti-dumping duties that would otherwise apply. The allocation began at 65,000 tonnes in 2016 and was subsequently increased, reaching close to 74,000 tonnes in recent years.
However, the South African Poultry Association (SAPA) has consistently challenged the arrangement, arguing that the concessions expose domestic producers to unfair competition from imported chicken portions.
The association maintains that the original conditions provided grounds for withdrawing the rebate if South Africa lost its AGOA privileges. With the United States planning to terminate South Africa’s eligibility for the trade programme from January 1, 2027, the poultry industry believes the circumstances surrounding the import agreement have fundamentally changed.
Nevertheless, the withdrawal of AGOA benefits will not automatically bring the chicken import rebate to an end. A separate formal government decision is required to cancel or withdraw the concession.
SAPA is therefore seeking engagement with Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Parks Tau and his legal team to establish the legal basis for ending the arrangement. The association also intends to use the latest developments to strengthen its existing court challenge against the continued application of the rebate.
The legal dispute is rooted in concerns that duty concessions on American chicken imports have placed additional pressure on local poultry businesses. Industry representatives argue that domestic producers must compete with imported products while facing their own production expenses, including feed, energy, labour and animal health costs.
The controversy has also raised questions about South Africa’s broader trade negotiations with Washington. Reports of a possible 72,000-tonne annual US chicken import allocation being considered as part of discussions towards a new trade arrangement have generated further concern among poultry industry representatives.
FairPlay, an organisation campaigning for fair trade in the poultry sector, has warned against turning the existing arrangement into a permanent concession outside AGOA. However, the reported proposal has not been confirmed as a final agreement, and details of any new arrangement remain unclear.
For local poultry farmers, the outcome could influence competition in the domestic chicken market, particularly for producers supplying frozen and fresh poultry products. Any changes to import duties or quotas could also affect importers, processors, retailers and consumers.
As South Africa prepares for a major change in its trading relationship with the United States, the poultry industry is pressing for the government to reassess concessions that were originally tied to AGOA. Whether the import rebate will be withdrawn remains a matter for formal government action and the ongoing legal process, leaving the future of the American chicken quota at the centre of an increasingly important trade debate.
