USDA: UAE chicken imports to rise 17 percent to 410,000 tonnes in 2027 as trade routes stabilise

USDA's Dubai post expects UAE chicken meat consumption to recover to 485,000 tonnes in 2027 from an estimated 425,000 tonnes in 2026, with imports for domestic consumption rising about 17 percent to 410,000 tonnes as shipping through the Strait of Hormuz normalises.

The forecast, published in USDA's Poultry and Products Annual for the United Arab Emirates (report TC2026-0010, 5 October 2026), follows a disrupted 2026. Post estimates consumption at 425,000 tonnes this year, 10 percent below 2025, attributing the fall mainly to temporary interruptions to poultry import flows caused by regional geopolitical turmoil and disruption to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

Total UAE poultry imports including transshipment and re-exports fell about 8 percent year on year in the first half of 2026, to 301,000 tonnes from 327,000 tonnes a year earlier. The decline was concentrated in the second quarter, when volumes dropped about 19 percent, after a comparatively strong first quarter. Even so, monthly intake averaged more than 50,000 tonnes.

• Consumption: 425,000 tonnes estimated for 2026, down 10 percent from 2025; forecast 485,000 tonnes in 2027.
• Imports: 350,000 tonnes for domestic consumption in 2026, rising to 410,000 tonnes in 2027.
• Local production: about 75,000 tonnes, covering only 15-18 percent of consumption - roughly 85 percent of demand is imported, led by Brazil and the United States.
• Alternative routes: Khorfakkan and Fujairah ports, outside the Strait of Hormuz, together with overland options via Oman (Sohar, Duqm, Salalah) and Saudi Red Sea ports, and the 900 km Etihad Rail network.
• Customs facilitation: Dubai Customs Notice No. 3/2026 allows containers arriving at Khorfakkan or Fujairah to be trucked directly to Jebel Ali and the Dubai Free Zones without standard clearance at the first port; Notice No. 4/2026 opened a "Green Corridor" with Oman's seaports.
• Demand profile: Indian and Pakistani communities (about 55 percent of the population) drive volume demand for frozen bone-in leg quarters; Arab communities (22 percent) favour whole and half birds.
• Halal: an Islamic slaughter certificate from an approved certifier is required for any poultry shipment into the UAE.

One timing point matters for suppliers: USDA expects UAE importers to start building Ramadan inventories early. Ramadan 2027 is expected to begin around 8 February, and orders are likely to be placed from October and November 2026 for December and early-January arrivals, with purchasing interest picking up through the fourth quarter.

Nau Food Group supplies frozen poultry and meat to Dubai and the wider GCC with halal certification, HACCP, and full origin and health documentation, and can arrange customs clearance and delivery into Jebel Ali, the Dubai Free Zones and onward markets. Enquiries: info@naufoodgroup.com.

Source: USDA Foreign Agricultural Service, GAIN report "Poultry and Products Annual - United Arab Emirates" (TC2026-0010), 5 October 2026.