According to a recent Rabobank report, global poultry market conditions are gradually recovering after a weak second half of 2023. Several markets that faced oversupply and falling prices have seen local market conditions improve in the first quarter of 2024. In most cases, these improvements were driven by production cuts to rebalance supply, which was pressuring demand.
“We expect global markets to continue to improve slightly,” said Nan-Dirk Mulder, senior analyst – Animal Protein at Rabobank. “Price will still drive market demand, but less so than in 2023, due to lower consumer price inflation and higher incomes.” This will support some recovery in demand for value-added poultry, like processed chicken and poultry concepts, and improved demand in foodservice. Business opportunities into these markets will recover. However, price consciousness among consumers will remain a key driver. The key challenge will be maintaining market balance with disciplined supply growth. “From a global perspective, we expect growth of 1.5% to 2% for 2024, driven primarily by emerging markets in Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Latin America. Growth in Europe, the US, and Japan will be slow,” Mulder said.