April 6, 2011
 

UAE poultry suppliers face massive chicken shortage

The UAE is facing a severe shortage of up to 30,000 fresh chicken a day on supermarket shelves, which suppliers are blaming on low hatchability from eggs imported from Europe resulting in a sharp decline in poultry production.

UAE media reported that the shortage has affected most of the country's big retailers. Abu Dhabi Cooperative Society has experienced a significant decline in available fresh chicken, said Vijay Thomas, the marketing manager.

An official at AlRawdha Poultry blamed the shortage on a combination of factors, including an unhealthy batch of breeding stock and some old production capacity being shut down because of a plant expansion.

"The chickens weren't healthy," said Ashok Prankian, the sales manager at AlRawdha Poultry in Dubai. "Even the ones that were a day old were very weak."

AlRawdha has the capacity to produce 48,000 chickens a day but it can slaughter only about 45,000, which has led the company to expand its facilities. The company said the supply shortage would continue for at least another month as upgrades to its machinery were under way. The work is expected to be completed by May 15.

Ras al Khaimah Poultry and Feeding Company, another significant player in the poultry market, also said it plans to close for three months. "We are going to close in May, June, and July to renovate and bring in new machines," said Dr Mohammed Siddiq, operations manager at the company.

A typical chicken growth cycle, from the time the egg hatches to slaughter, is about 60 days.