Buyer guide · Supplier checks

How to check a frozen chicken supplier before you pay

Check the plant, not the offer. A genuine frozen chicken supplier can name the producing plant, and that plant appears on your destination's official establishment list for the exact product. Contact the company through details you found yourself, sign a contract before paying, and tie payment to documents you can check.

Last reviewed 22 October 2026 by the HatchMatch Group editorial team. Warning signs marked "ABPA" come from the Brazilian Animal Protein Association's published warning; others are labelled commercial practice. This is not legal advice.

Warning signs and what to check

Warning signs of fake frozen chicken offers and how to check each one
Warning sign	What to check
A website or email that copies a real exporter's name, logo or addressABPA	Find the company's own website independently and contact it through the details published there — not the ones in the offer.
A plant number (for Brazil, an SIF number) you cannot match to an official listABPA	Look the plant up in the destination's establishment list and, for Brazil, MAPA's export-eligible establishments search.
An invoice or pro-forma for a sale that was never negotiatedABPA	Only pay against a contract you signed, with a specification and Incoterm you agreed.
Labels or photos that do not match the plant or product offeredABPA	Ask for the plant number on the carton label and check it against the list for your product.
An 'office' that exists only as a bank account and a phone numberABPA	Confirm a registered company and a physical operation; ask for references you can call independently.
Pressure to pay a deposit to a personal or third-country account	Commercial practice: pay the contracting company's own account, against documents you can check.
A price far below recent offers with no explanation	Commercial practice: compare several offers on the same specification before treating a price as real.
Unlimited volume promised immediately, any destination	Eligibility is destination-, product- and plant-specific; a genuine exporter names the markets its plants are approved for.

Source: ABPA — "Fake offers: fique atento!" (30 April 2024, Portuguese)

Official plant lists to check

Eligibility is specific to the product, the plant and the destination, and it changes. Check the list on the day you contract.

Brazil (origin)
MAPA — establishments eligible for export, by country and product
European Union
European Commission — non-EU countries and authorised establishments
China
GACC — meat products eligible for export to China, by country
Saudi Arabia
SFDA — country and establishment lists by product
United Arab Emirates
MOCCAE — approved slaughterhouses
United States (origin)
USDA FSIS — export requirements by destination

Country-by-country steps: Saudi Arabia · UAE · China · Philippines · South Africa · all guides

Six checks before you pay

Write your specification first (cut, grade tolerances, packing, destination, Incoterm). Real suppliers quote to it; fake offers usually avoid it.
Identify the producing plant, not just the trading company, and get its plant number for your product.
Check that plant on your destination's official list, and on the origin's export list where one exists.
Contact the producer or trader through details you found independently, and confirm the offer is theirs.
Agree a written contract before any payment; tie payments to documents (for example a bill of lading and health certificate) rather than to promises.
Before loading, arrange inspection or ask your customs broker which documents the destination checks on arrival.

What HatchMatch does — and does not do

HatchMatch's role compared with what stays with the buyer
HatchMatch does	Stays with you and your broker
Reviews every brief with a person and asks clarifying questions	Checking each plant on the official list for your product
Approaches suppliers on your behalf, keeping your identity private	Import permits, registrations and customs clearance
Compares returned offers on the same specification	Contract, payment terms and inspection

HatchMatch holds no stock, publishes no prices and does not certify suppliers or guarantee supply, eligibility or delivery.

Common questions

How do I know if a Brazilian frozen chicken exporter is real?: Match the plant number to MAPA's export-eligible establishments search and to your destination's list, and contact the company through its own published details. Brazil's poultry association ABPA warns about cloned exporter websites, false SIF numbers and invoices for sales that never happened.
Is a certificate PDF enough proof?: No. A document can be copied or altered. Check the plant against the official list yourself and confirm the certificate details with the issuer or through your customs broker.
Does HatchMatch verify frozen chicken suppliers?: HatchMatch does not certify suppliers or guarantee that a plant is eligible. A person reviews every brief, the team approaches suppliers on your behalf, and we point you to the official lists — the eligibility check stays with you and your broker.
Who should I report a fake offer to?: ABPA asks buyers to contact it or Brazil's embassies and consulates about suspicious offers using Brazilian exporters' names. For other origins, contact the exporter's national trade body or embassy and your own police fraud unit.

Send one reviewed brief instead

Poultry meat and table-egg programmes from USD 250,000 total programme or lot value. Buyers pay nothing; a person reviews every brief, and HatchMatch aims to reply within two business days.

Poultry meat or table eggs RFQ Frozen chicken specification guide