Baladi Petitions Court Over Revocation of Brazilian Poultry Plant Approval
Meat importer Baladi has filed a legal petition against the Israeli Ministry of Agriculture over the revocation of approval for its multi-million-shekel poultry plant in Brazil.
Chicken prices in Israel are unlikely to drop as meat importer Baladi has filed an administrative petition against the Ministry of Agriculture and Dr. Sergio Dolev, acting head of the Veterinary Services. The petition challenges the revocation of approval for Baladi's newly established poultry plant in Brazil, an investment totaling tens of millions of shekels.
The petition was filed three months after the ministry reversed its previous decision, which had greenlit the facility following an earlier legal challenge by the company. Baladi argues that the ministry revoked the authorization just two weeks before the Likud primaries, amid a fierce public campaign targeting Agriculture Minister Avi Dichter over concerns of harming local poultry farmers.
According to the petition, former Veterinary Services head Dr. Tamir Goshn resigned under intense pressure, leading to the appointment of Dr. Dolev. Baladi claims Dolev's decision to delist the Brazilian plant was made without a prior hearing, without new factual justifications, and ignored the company's reliance on the initial approval.
Simultaneously, Baladi is engaged in a separate legal battle against the Chief Rabbinate regarding kosher certification for imports. Currently, Israel relies entirely on domestic poultry production, and Baladi's attempt to break the market monopoly faces intense regulatory hurdles from both the Ministry of Agriculture and the Rabbinate, while local chicken prices remain persistently high.
