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 The United States wants China to limit trade only from states or
regions that have had cases of the flu, which is deadly to poultry,
Vilsack told reporters.
Cases of avian flu prompted China and South Korea to impose bans on
U.S. poultry imports earlier this year. Last year, the two countries
accounted for about $428.5 million in export sales of U.S. poultry
meat and products, according to USDA data.
There are "no incidents on the East Coast, so why would you say 'You
can't buy poultry from Virginia or North Carolina?'" Vilsack said.
China's agriculture minister indicated he would consider Vilsack's
request, but linked the matter to U.S. limits on imports of poultry
raised and processed in China, Vilsack said. The U.S. restrictions
on imports of poultry from China are related to human health, while
the bird flu is an issue of animal health, he added.
A team from China will likely visit the United States this year to
observe measures U.S. poultry producers take to protect flocks from
the virus, Vilsack said. The visit will be part of the U.S. effort
to convince China to eliminate the countrywide ban.
So far, the outbreak of bird flu has affected more than 7.3 million
birds in U.S. commercial flocks. On Friday, a USDA official told
Reuters the department has $84.2 million in funds to address the
outbreak. It is already aware of $60 million in indemnity claims
that will be made by poultry farmers seeking compensation for culled
flocks.
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The United States also has pressed Mexico, the top importer of U.S.
poultry, to ease its restrictions on imports of U.S. chickens and
turkeys. Mexico limits imports from states with infected flocks, and
the USDA would like the restrictions to be applied only to counties
with infected farms.
(Reporting by Tom Polansek; Editing by Dan Grebler)
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