Alabama's poultry industry worries that it could soon feel fallout from the Russia-Georgian military conflict.
That is because Russia has banned imports from 19 U.S. poultry suppliers and has indicated that it could add even more companies. Claiming that the ban revolves around antibiotics and chemicals placed in some American Chicken.
Farmers like Pike County's Jeremy Brown hope this kind of activity ceases immediatley .
"With a 10 to 14 day out time and that could be increased to 3, 4, maybe even 5 weeks with no birds in the house, we're not producing any income"
Last year, the United States shipped almost one bilion dollars worth of chicken meat to the Russian market. A market that accounts for about a third of all poultry exports by the United States, said Alabama Farmers Federation Poultry Division Director Guy Hall.
“This action is similar to the ban Russia issued in March 2002 in retaliation to American tariffs placed on Russian steel,” Hall said. “If it continues, it will likely have a very negative impact for our poultry producers.”