Saudi Arabia limits Brazilian poultry ban to Santa Catarina as Newcastle disease reaches a second farm

Saudi Arabia has restricted Brazilian poultry to Santa Catarina rather than banning the country, and Mexico has narrowed its own ban to the same state - regionalisation is holding the line, but almost 14 percent of Brazil's poultry exports now sit behind some form of restriction.

Brazil confirmed Newcastle disease on 18 October 2026 at a commercial turkey farm in Nova Itaberaba, in the southern state of Santa Catarina, and a second outbreak in the state was reported on 26 October. Santa Catarina accounted for 13.7 percent of Brazil's chicken slaughter in 2025, second only to Parana, according to the national statistics agency IBGE - which is why the reaction of importers mattered more than the size of the outbreak itself.

Mexico moved first and moved furthest: a nationwide ban on 19 October, although Mexico took about 244,000 tonnes of Brazilian chicken worth around USD 777 million in 2025, roughly 22.8 percent of its chicken imports and second only to the United States as a supplier. On 31 October Mexico narrowed the suspension to Santa Catarina. Saudi Arabia, Brazil's third-largest market, restricted imports from Santa Catarina only; the Kingdom took around 397,200 tonnes in 2025, close to 8 percent of Brazil's total chicken exports. Malaysia, Chile and China also imposed restrictions, according to Brazil's Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock.

China is the exposure that matters most. Brazil shipped about 420,000 tonnes of chicken to China in January-September 2026, making it the largest destination, and the precedent is uncomfortable: after the 2024 outbreak, restrictions linked to Rio Grande do Sul stayed in place until January 2026, more than a year after Brazil regained disease-free status in October 2024. Documentary clearance, not the veterinary situation, is what decides when volume actually moves again.

• What changed: Newcastle disease confirmed on 18 October 2026 in Nova Itaberaba, Santa Catarina; a second outbreak reported on 26 October; Saudi Arabia and Mexico now restrict Santa Catarina rather than all of Brazil.
• Why it matters to Gulf buyers: Santa Catarina is Brazil's second-largest poultry state at 13.7 percent of slaughter, so even a state-level ban removes real tonnage from the offer book, and the certificate has to name an establishment and municipality that are eligible on the date of shipment.
• The precedent to watch: China's 2024 restrictions outlasted Brazil's disease-free status by more than a year, so a quick resolution of the outbreak does not automatically mean a quick reopening.
• Practical response: book with the establishment number and municipality written into the contract, keep a second origin qualified, and treat the health certificate as a shipment-date document rather than an order-date document.

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Source: Food & Agribusiness / Poultry World, "Brazil could face costly poultry export restrictions after Newcastle disease outbreak", 4 November 2026, citing Brazil's Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock and IBGE; Reuters, "Brazil detects second Newcastle disease outbreak in Santa Catarina", 26 October 2026.