Chandigarh, May 30
The sky-rocketing prices of poultry feed have led to the highest-ever price of these products in the lean summer season. The prices of eggs and chicken have shot up by 33 per cent in the past one year, in spite of low demand in the domestic market.
As against the wholesale price of Rs 180 per 100 eggs (retail price of Rs 24 per dozen) in May last year, the wholesale prices have now shot up to Rs 237-240 per 100 eggs and the retail prices have increased to Rs 32 per dozen. Similarly, the price of a dressed chicken has shot up from Rs 95 per kg to Rs 100-120 per kg now.
Sources in the poultry trade informed The Tribune that over the past one year, the price of maize had increased from Rs 800 per quintal last year to Rs 1,100 per quintal now. The price of soya, too, had increased from Rs 1,400 per quintal last year to Rs 2,700 per quintal at present. Though the price of minerals like manganese, zinc and ferrous, which are added to poultry feed, had come down, this had been offset by high prices of maize and soya meal.
Surjit Singh, chairman, North Zone Broiler Breeders Association, said the feed prices were up by almost 60 per cent in the past one year, forcing them to increase the price of poultry products.
GS Bedi, president, Amritsar Poultry Industry Association, said the price of maize had come down for a few months last year after its export was banned by the government. “But after the ban was lifted in October last year, the prices again started shooting up as exports started increasing. However, poultry farmers have not increased the prices of products in tandem with the increase in prices of poultry feed. As a result, several small poultry farmers have had to close shop and have offered their farms on rent to the bigger farmers,” he said.
He added that while poultry farmers here had had to close shop because of high prices of maize, several multinational exporters and traders have earned huge profits through its exports.
