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Chicken rates surge as demand resumes

Divit

Hyderabad: Increased consumption of chicken coupled with reduced production has led to a hike in chicken prices across the state. For the past few days, the price of chicken has been in the range of Rs 220 to Rs 250 per kg skinless and the average chicken price ranges from Rs 160 to Rs 180 per kg. On Sunday, chicken skinless was sold at Rs 220 per kg.

Traders in the poultry business attribute the increase in price hike and household consumption (excluding hoteliers) to media reports suggesting that the consumption of protein can boost immunity. People choose to consume chicken as its the cheapest form of protein. The increased consumption this month can also be attributed to Pirti Paksha, which lasts for around 15 to 17 days.

According to the Telangana Poultry Federation (TPF) and Indian Poultry Equipment Manufacturers Association (IPEMA), people across the state were consuming around 12 lakh kg of chicken everyday prior to the pandemic. The demand for poultry products dipped in April but is steadily increasing in households. The average consumption of chicken as on date stands at 10 lakh kg per day. Though household consumption is increasing, consumption of chicken has not reached 12 lakh kg every day in the state as there is drastic dip in purchase by hoteliers.Farmers are unable to meet the increased demand for chicken.

Farmers used to breed around 2 crore chicks per month before the pandemic. However, they are producing only around 1.5 crore small chicks and have not increased the supply despite increased domestic consumption and this has resulted in disruption in the demand and supply chain. Telangana Poultry Federation president Errabelli Pradeep Rao said that the market will stabilise once the hotel industry starts seeing more customers. “As on date, domestic consumption has increased but purchase by hoteliers is very low. Once the business is back on track the market will be strengthened and the prices will also stabilise.

Source: THE TIMES OF INDIA

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