UAE is Brazil's largest chicken buyer in October at 53,200 tonnes as Gulf purchases jump 30%

The UAE was Brazil's largest chicken market in October with 53,200 tonnes, up 29.8%, and Saudi Arabia was second with 47,900 tonnes, up 30.6% - Gulf buyers restocked heavily even as the average export price rose about 12%.

ABPA, Brazil's animal protein association, reported on 9 November that chicken exports including fresh and processed products reached 512,800 tonnes in October 2026, 2.3% above the 501,400 tonnes of October 2025 and the best October on record as well as the largest monthly volume of the year. Revenue rose faster than volume, up 14.9% to USD 994.1 million from USD 865.4 million a year earlier.

The Gulf did most of the work. The UAE took 53,200 tonnes, up 29.8% from 41,000 tonnes in October 2025, making it the single largest destination for the month; Saudi Arabia took 47,900 tonnes, up 30.6% from 36,600 tonnes. China followed at 46,800 tonnes, Japan at 38,700 tonnes and South Africa at 30,100 tonnes, the one top-five market to buy less. Over January to October Brazil shipped 4.9 million tonnes, 12.7% more than a year earlier, with revenue up 20.4%; China remains the largest buyer over the ten months, ahead of the UAE, Japan, Saudi Arabia and the European Union.

The October record was achieved with Newcastle disease present in Brazil. Four outbreaks were confirmed in Santa Catarina during the month, and ABPA president Ricardo Santin attributed the result to the sanitary regionalisation agreements that kept restrictions confined to the areas named in the protocols, together with the industry's ability to redirect shipments while negotiations continue. The European Union has been out of the market since 3 September, when it stopped accepting Brazilian certificates over unproven controls on antimicrobial use, although a European technical mission has since concluded that Brazil can demonstrate the safety of its production.

• UAE: 53,200 t, +29.8%; Saudi Arabia: 47,900 t, +30.6%. The two Gulf markets together took about 101,000 t, close to a fifth of the month's exports.
• Average export value: about USD 1,939/t against USD 1,726/t a year earlier, a rise of roughly 12% - volume grew 2.3% while revenue grew 14.9%.
• Year to date: 4.9 million tonnes, +12.7%, with revenue up 20.4%; China, the UAE, Japan, Saudi Arabia and the EU are the top five destinations.
• Disease status: four Newcastle disease outbreaks in Santa Catarina in October. Export flows held only because regionalisation limited restrictions to defined areas.
• What it means for a Gulf contract: the health certificate has to name a municipality and establishment that are eligible on the shipment date, and Brazilian chicken is no longer the discount it was a year ago.

For importers building Ramadan and first-quarter programmes, the practical reading is that Gulf demand is strong enough to keep Brazil's best tonnage pointed at this region, and that the cheapest offer is only useful if its paperwork is valid on the day the container sails. Nau International Food Group supplies halal frozen poultry and frozen meat from HACCP-certified, GACC-registered plants in China (establishment numbers 0900 / 03003), with halal, veterinary health and certificate of origin issued for every shipment, and arranges customs clearance into Dubai including DDP Jebel Ali. For specifications, packing data and shipping schedules, write to info@naufoodgroup.com.

Source: ABPA (Brazilian Animal Protein Association) October 2026 export data, released 9 November 2026, as reported by DatamarNews and Globo Rural on 9 November 2026.