Lawmakers Seek to Curb Trade Bans on US Poultry Exports

A bipartisan group of more than 50 lawmakers urged USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service last week to protect U.S. poultry exports from what they consider unwarranted trade restrictions.

In a letter, the lawmakers asked APHIS to press the World Organization for Animal Health to revise its definition of “poultry” to ensure commercial poultry exports are not affected if highly pathogenic avian influenza is detected in a non-commercial backyard flock or a hunting preserve. The letter says American poultry producers are losing hundreds of millions of dollars in exports annually because isolated cases of HPAI detections in backyard or wild birds are prompting unnecessary trade bans.

The letter was led by Reps. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., and Sanford Bishop, D-Ga., and Sens. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, and Chris Coons, D-Del. APHIS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.