Several shipments of U.S. chicken on their way to China are being diverted to South Korea and Hong Kong because of the disruption at Chinese ports as the country tries to contain the spread of the coronavirus, Agri-Pulse has learned.

China’s Finance Ministry announced Thursday that on Feb. 14 it will cut tariff rates on $75 billion worth of U.S. products, including some ag commodities such as soybeans, chicken, pork, oranges and asparagus, but the impact is expected to be minimal.

The top trade official in the United States says he is aware of reports about the impact of the coronavirus on China's ability to fulfill commitments made during recent trade negotiations but has yet to formally hear from his counterparts there. 

The Agriculture Department is clarifying labeling requirements for meat and poultry products, including for claims that animals are “grass-fed” or treated without antibiotics or hormones.

The first shipment of U.S. chicken to be sent to China in years will be arriving in January, marking the resumption in trade after China lifted its ban just a little over a month ago, USA Poultry and Egg Export Council President Jim Sumner tells Agri-Pulse.

The Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service has announced 172 American poultry slaughter and processing facilities that can export their products to China.

China is lifting its four-year ban on U.S. poultry, opening the way for hundreds of millions of dollars of U.S. exports and demonstrating a further thaw in U.S.-China trade relations.

The USDA is now moving to open the U.S. border to Chinese chicken amid final talks between the two countries to wrap up a partial trade pact that is promised to result in China increasing its imports of U.S. ag commodities.