Producers in the Brazilian state of São Paulo dispatched on Tuesday the first 27 tonnes of the 500 tonnes of chicken they are exporting to China, Xinhua reports.

The Chinese government-run news agency quotes São Paulo Agriculture Secretary Gustavo Junqueira, as remarking that the São Paulo poultry industry, by expanding beyond its home market, is creating demand for labour on farms and in slaughterhouses.

The report says São Paulo Governor João Doria’s visit to China and the opening of the São Paulo trade office in Shanghai last August enabled the state to start exporting chicken to China.

China bought 34 percent more Brazilian chicken last year than year before, as Brazilian’s chicken exports grew 2.8 percent, Xinhua says. China has been Brazil’s major trade partner since 2009.