June 21, 2006

Indian poultry farmers demand government supply promised corn

Poultry farmers in India's state of Tamil Nadu have urged the Union Agriculture Ministry to release the 500,000 tonnes of corn to be used as poultry feed promised during the height of the bird flu crisis.

Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar has said he would provide the grain at  Rs3.50/kg (US$0.08), said Tamil Nadu Egg Co-ordination Committee president Nallathampi

The farmers were now buying maize from the open market at Rs 6.50/kg (US$0.14), which was beyond their financial reach, Nallathampi said.

He said the farmers had faced immense financial difficulties during the past few months as a result of dismal sales of poultry and poultry products during the bird flu crisis.

However, he noted that the industry is slowly recovering, citing figures that indicated over 20 million eggs sold daily and 1 million exported.