September 11, 2007

Price ceiling for poultry impractical, Malaysian poultry breeders say

The Malaysian government's insistence on a ceiling price during festive seasons for poultry is hurting the poultry industry in Perak, poultry breeders said.

Perak is one of the states in Malaysia. The Perak Poultry Dealers Association said it would be selling chickens at RM6 per kg, in violation of the ceiling price of RM5.60 set by the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry

Association chairman Jimmy Chong Tong Sing said it was impossible for dealers to sell their chickens at RM5.60 when they obtained the chickens at RM5.70 per kg.

The new prices were to take effect from Thursday (Sep 13) to Oct 20 for the Malay festival of Hari Raya Aidilfitri, and from Nov 1 to 15 for the Indian festival of Deepavali.

Chong also warned that there could be a shortage of chickens in the market as chicken farmers had cut down on production to reduce losses.

He estimated there is a 20 percent chicken shortage in the market and this could worsen once dealers quit the loss-making business.

Although the ceiling price was a well-meaning effort, Chong said poultry prices had remained unchanged for the past 10 years.

Discussions with relevant authorities have yielded little so far while costs have been escalating, he said.