Mexico suspended imports of chicken meat and other poultry products from Brazil on Monday (19) after a Newcastle disease outbreak was confirmed at a commercial turkey farm in Nova Itaberaba, in the west of Santa Catarina state, Brazil's poultry heartland. The measure was announced by Mexico's Secretariat of Agriculture and Rural Development and also covers live birds and hatching eggs, according to G1.

"The measure was taken to protect national poultry production, since Mexico is a country free of Newcastle disease," the Mexican secretariat said in a statement, as reported by O Globo.

Brazil's Agriculture Ministry confirmed the outbreak at a farm housing around 6,000 turkeys. The property was placed under quarantine, bird movements at the site were suspended and containment and eradication actions follow the official contingency plan for avian influenza and Newcastle disease. The case will be reported to the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) and to Brazil's trade partners.

The weight of the Mexican market

Brazil is the world's largest chicken exporter and ships about 30% of its production abroad, according to official data cited by O Globo, which lists Mexico among the main destinations. It is the second time in a year and a half that Mexico closes its doors to Brazilian poultry: between May and June 2025, Mexico, China, the European Union and other Latin American countries halted purchases after an avian flu outbreak at a commercial farm in Brazil.

For the supply chain, losing a buyer of this size forces exporting meatpackers to redirect volumes to other markets or to the domestic market, which tends to pressure wholesale prices if the embargo drags on. The industry is now watching whether other countries will adopt similar restrictions.

For consumers, health authorities say there is no food safety risk. The Agriculture Ministry and Cidasc, Santa Catarina's state agricultural agency, say poultry meat and eggs from inspected plants remain safe. Newcastle disease is highly contagious among birds but is not transmitted by consumption; in humans it can cause at most a transient conjunctivitis lasting about a week, through direct contact with infected birds.