March 3, 2022

Drop in poultry sales in Indore, India, impacts poultry prices

Indore, India's poultry prices have dropped by over 20% in the past two months due to a drop in sales in local and nearby markets, said poultry farms and traders.

Indore is a major trading centre for poultry from where eggs and chicken are routed to various nearby locations within the state.

"Poultry production has taken a sharp hit this season. Demand has plummeted pushing prices below the cost of production. Many units have shut output while most of them are running on thin capacity," poultry farm owner Dinesh Makhija said.

On March 1, farm rate of eggs in Indore was ₹3.60 (US$0.05) per piece as against ₹4.50 (US$0.06) per piece in January, according to traders and poultry farm owners.

As eggs and chicken prices have tumbled below the cost of production, many poultry farms in the Indore region have cut down production by half.

"It has become difficult to survive at these rates. Feed prices are continuously rising and poultry rates have fallen by over 20% since January," poultry farm owner Satpal Singh Bhatia, said.

According to industry players, the cost of poultry feed has risen to ₹25/kg (US$0.33) as against the usual ₹20-22/kg (US$0.26-0.29), lifting the overall cost of operations in poultry farms. Soybean meal and corn are main components of poultry feed.

- Times of India