Bangladesh Poultry Association, the organisation of marginal farmers, has alleged that looting is going on in the country's poultry sector because there is no government oversight. It claims the sector's corporate companies have taken Tk 936 crore in the last 52 days by raising the prices of chickens and chicks.

The claim was made in a press release on Thursday (23 March). The release, signed by the association's president Sumon Howlader, said the country's daily demand for broiler chicken is 3,500 tonnes.

Marginal farmers' production cost for broilers is now Tk 160–165 a kg, while corporate companies' production cost is Tk 130–140, the release said. But these chickens sold at up to Tk 230 at wholesale level, meaning the corporate firms made at least Tk 60 a kg extra profit.

Two thousand tonnes of chicken reach the market every day through the corporate companies (including their contract farms). On that basis their extra profit is Tk 12 crore a day.

The marginal farmers' body says that in this way, over the 52 days from 31 January to 23 March, the corporate companies made a profit of Tk 624 crore from selling chickens, and Tk 312 crore from selling day-old chicks.

In total, Bangladesh Poultry Association claims, Tk 936 crore was taken by raising the prices of chickens and chicks.

According to the association, 2 million (20 lakh) chicks are produced in the country every day, all of them by the companies. It costs Tk 28–30 to produce each chick, up from Tk 10–15 in the first week of January this year. Although each should now be supplied at Tk 62–68, they are selling at Tk 80–85, so the corporate companies are making an extra profit of Tk 30 on every chick.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.