SA poultry industry seeks protection from cheap chicken imports

South Africa is facing a very real threat to the country's food security due to unsustainable pressure on the poultry industry, the largest component of the agriculture sector, according to Business Live. As the cheapest form of meat on the market, Lovell says, chicken account for about half of the country's protein needs.

"The poultry industry" he adds, "supports and provides employment from grain production to poultry production, processing, distribution and retailing."

Business Live reports that the South African poultry industry is looking to government to take steps to protect it from the flood of cheap chicken imports - with an almost 40% increase in such imports during 2011 and with all indicators pointing to at least the same rate for 2012, Lovell warns.

Read the full article on www.businesslive.co.za