3.3 Export
Export has been very significant for the broiler sector. Before the HPAI outbreak in 2004,
as much as 40 percent of broiler production was exported annually (37 percent and 39
percent in 2002 and 2003, respectively). As not all chicken parts are exportable, the great
majority of broiler chickens were raised for export purposes. The story was very different
for eggs, the export of which was negligible (merely 1 to 2 percent of total production) and
was mostly undertaken to stabilize the domestic price.
Between 1994 and 2003, the total quantity of broiler export almost tripled (increased
by 187 percent, see Table 4). This period also witnessed a significant structural change in
export. Prior to 1994, almost all exports were frozen de-boned raw chicken, as Thailand’s
competitive advantage stemmed from her low wage rates. The export of precooked chicken-meat
products began in the early 1990s and accounted for less than 10 percent of the
total in 1994. It has been increasing sharply ever since. In 2003, the share of precooked
chicken in total export was almost one-third. The growth of precooked-chicken export has
been even more dramatic since the HPAI outbreak of 2004. In just three years (from 2003
to 2006) the quantity of precooked chicken exported almost doubled. As Thai raw/frozen
broilers are still banned by most importers, precooked chicken accounted for 97 percent of
export quantity and about 98 percent of export value in 2006.
Although the structural change in export was accelerated by the HPAI outbreaks (and
the possibility that HPAI could return at anytime), such a change had been expected for
quite some time. As wages in Thailand are substantially higher than in neighbouring
countries, and given that these neighbours include two populous countries, China and
Viet Nam, it was clear that once these countries were able to comply with the importers’
food-safety and animal-welfare requirements, it would only be a matter of time before
Thailand faced keen competition. Therefore, some integrated companies – especially the
well-known CP Group – had begun to prepare themselves for such a change for more than
a decade. In addition to expanding its production base in China and Viet Nam, its shift of
some production lines to precooked products has been part of an overall attempt to move
towards higher value-added products in order to overcome the disadvantage of having
high production costs (especially high feed prices and labour costs).
In the past decade or so, factories, processing plants, feed mills and slaughterhouses
have developed their operations to meet the standards required by various importing coun-tries. Some exporters have transformed their broiler export from frozen/raw to precooked/
prepared products, as they realize that customers will continue to demand inexpensive,
high-quality finished products. This also means products that are healthy – free from foodborne
pathogens and containing minimal amounts of carcass fat – and that are tender,
tasty and palatable to the consumer. Value-added marketing of such products is also an
avenue for exporting companies to differentiate their most prized product offerings, while
continuing to create processed products that add value and target the changing needs of
the consumers, who now usually look for products that can be quickly and easily prepared
in 15–30 minutes or less. The sharp growth in precooked products reflects the thinking
of the industry’s leaders long before the HPAI outbreak; although it was the outbreak that
finally forced exporters to change their products in order to survive.
It should be noted that while the prices of precooked chicken products are usually
higher than those of raw/frozen products, they are not spectacularly so. At present, the
average export price of precooked chicken products is approximately 40 percent above the
average export price of raw/frozen broiler, substantially lower than the price premium in
the past (e.g. between 1994 and 1998 when the price premiums were as high as 60 to
120 percent, see Table 4). This premium should nonetheless suffice to keep the industry
growing and provide a viable escape route in the wake of the HPAI epidemics.
Thailand’s major broiler export markets in the past decade were Japan and the EU (Figure
6). In 1995, Japan accounted for 79 percent and the EU accounted for only 12 percent
of total broiler meat exports. However, in the past decade Thailand’s export to the EU
increased substantially, partly because Thailand’s export prices were more competitive. In
2005, exports to Japan and the EU accounted for 48 and 47 percent of total broiler meat
exports, respectively (see details in Table 5). In the past, Japan usually bought uncooked
meat in the form of boneless leg meat, boneless breast meat, and special cut-meat in sticks
(Yakitori) and other made-to-order chicken meat products. Now almost all exported meat is
in the form of made-to-order products, which are processed or prepared by heat (grilling, steaming, boiling, etc.). Some of these products are breaded or seasoned (with salt, Japanese
sauce, etc.). The EU used to import Thailand’s broiler meat in the form of uncooked
skinless boneless breast meat, but also switched to semi-cooked and cooked meat in madeto-order
styles in the wake of HPAI outbreaks.
While Thailand is a major broiler exporter where export has been carried out without
any price support or export subsidy programmes, the broiler industry is still protected by
substantial import tariffs (30 percent for chilled or frozen uncooked meat and 40 percent
for cooked chicken meat in 2006). This is partly because Thailand’s comparative advantage
has always been in processing rather than in broiler production. Without such a protection
measure, it would be possible for some countries (e.g. the United States of America) to
export low-value chicken parts – especially the wings and leg-quarters – to Thailand. The
industry’s justification for the import protection has been that export prices of wings and
legs from the United States of America could be so low as to be equivalent to dumping.
Moreover, as much of Thai broiler meat export consists of white breast meat for the EU
market, there is potential for Thailand to have surplus of wings and legs, especially if export
soars again. To date, the Thai government and the industry have tried to avoid this issue
when negotiating with the United States of America.