Chamber of Agribusiness Calls for National Poultry Biosecurity Programme after Saudi Arabia Import Ban
The Chamber of Agribusiness Ghana (CAG) has called for the immediate establishment of a national poultry and meat safety, biosecurity and quality assurance programme following Saudi Arabia’s decision to prohibit poultry and egg imports from Ghana and several other countries over avian influenza concerns.
In a media statement issued on March 10, 2026, the Chamber described Ghana’s inclusion on the ban list as a significant institutional challenge that requires a coordinated national response to strengthen the country’s food safety and animal health systems.
The ban, announced by the Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA), covers poultry products and table eggs from forty countries, citing the growing global threat of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) and Newcastle disease.
While the Chamber acknowledged that the decision was consistent with global food safety governance frameworks such as the World Trade Organization’s Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Agreement and Codex Alimentarius standards, it warned that the development carries significant implications for Ghana’s poultry value chain and its credibility in global agribusiness trade.
“Ghana’s inclusion on this list is an institutional and systemic challenge, and it demands an institutional and systemic response,” the Chamber stated.
The organisation stressed that Ghana’s pathway back to international market access would depend on aligning national food safety and animal health systems with globally accepted standards.
According to the Chamber, although the SFDA directive provides a conditional exemption for poultry products that undergo heat treatment or other validated processing capable of eliminating avian influenza and Newcastle disease viruses, the requirements are stringent.
These include compliance with approved health standards, certification by competent authorities, confirmation that the processing eliminates disease pathogens, and proof that the products originate from facilities formally approved by Saudi authorities.
The Chamber therefore urged the government to establish a high-level inter-agency National Poultry and Meat Safety, Biosecurity and Quality Assurance Taskforce under the Ministry of Food and Agriculture.
The taskforce, it proposed, should be co-chaired by the Veterinary Services Directorate and the Food and Drugs Authority and include the Ghana Standards Authority, veterinary professionals, poultry industry operators, public health institutions and research bodies.
The proposed programme would focus on strengthening farm-level biosecurity compliance, expanding disease surveillance, improving laboratory diagnostic capacity, ensuring cold chain integrity, and enhancing traceability and certification systems across the poultry value chain.
According to the Chamber, such reforms would not only restore Ghana’s access to international markets but also protect domestic consumers from potential food safety risks.
The group added that Ghana’s ability to guarantee the safety of its own food supply will increasingly determine its competitiveness in global agricultural trade as international food safety standards become more rigorous.
