November 28, 2013

Sri Lanka eyes potential poultry export markets

Due to the increase in domestic poultry production, which has surpassed local demand, Sri Lankan poultry producers are eyeing potential export markets.

"The Sri Lankan government should provide incentives for poultry producers to export their products to earn much needed foreign exchange for the country", Yakooth Naleem, managing director of Bairaha Farms, and joint coordinator of the Poultry Producers Forum, told the Business Times.

At present an average of 10,000 tonnes of chicken meat and 100 million eggs are being produced monthly and per capita consumption is six kilogrammes. Sri Lanka has the capacity to export at least 300,000 kilogrammes or 300 tonnes of chicken meat monthly.

Yakooth said that his firm has already established contacts with several Middle Eastern buyers who are ready to place purchasing orders. However he noted that poultry producers have to pay value added tax (VAT), nation building tax (NBT) and income tax excluding other duties and indirect taxes, in particular tax (CESS) on corn and other consumables, which are also substantial in amount. The industry is paying excessive amounts to the Treasury and there are calls that the government should provide some concessions to producers who have to purchase all raw material including corn locally paying comparatively high prices.

In order to make the industry self-sufficient in 2016, the government has allocated LKR90 million (US$686,000) to provide self-employment assistance to small and medium scale poultry farmers. Some 4,500 new small scale poultry farms, 75 mini hatcheries and 100 mini processing units will be set up to boost the industry.

The economic Development Ministry has also announced that the National Programme to make Sri Lanka self-sufficient in eggs by 2014 is now nearing its goal. The government will take steps to stop chicken egg imports by the end of next year.