Chicken Exports Earn Over $9m

Close to 16,000 tons of chicken meat worth more than 312.96 billion rials ($9.62 million) were exported from Iran during the five months to Aug. 22, figures released by the Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration show. The main export destinations for Iranian chicken were Hong Kong, Iraq, Qatar, Vietnam, Taiwan and Macau, Young Journalists Club reported. About 50,000 tons of chicken were exported from Iran in the last fiscal year (March 2016-17), down from 80,000 tons in the previous year, registering a 37.5% decline, the head of Broiler Breeders Union said. “The reason for this decline is that poultry and egg exports from the country were banned due to the outbreak of avian flu,” Mohammad Yousefi was quoted as saying by the Persian daily Abrar-e-Eqtesadi. H5N8, a dangerous strain of the bird or avian flu virus, was first detected in seven provinces late November last year and contained a few months later.