An article by Josh Zumbrun in the June 13th edition of The Wall Street Journal describes the financial plight of Down-light International, a U.S. manufacturer of feather-stuffed quilts and bedding. The company was granted an exclusion from substantial duties on the feathers they import from China. The company unfortunately still has to compete with manufactured products that incorporate lower labor rates and in some cases hidden subsidies and support extended by the Government of China.
Discounting the question of import duties on raw material or finished products, the question arises as to whether importation of feathers or feather-containing products from China represents a potential danger to the U.S. poultry industry. If feathers have been effectively sterilized then there should be no problem. Can we trust suppliers in China given that HPAI is endemic in that nation, placing our industry at potential risk? China previously imposed a blanket ban on all imports of live poultry and products from the U.S. immediately following a report of even a single case of LPAI in a backyard farm. Although China has accepted compartmentalization and regionalization with respect to some livestock diseases this is more a reflection of short-term need than a function of adherence to scientific principles or OIE regulations.
Perhaps it is time for the broiler industry to evaluate the relative income from feathers as a feed ingredient and consider producing a suitably processed commercial added value product for domestic use. At the very least importation of feathers from China should cease.