March 20, 2020

Pakistan's poultry group rejects government demand

In view of the issue on COVID-19, the Pakistan Poultry Association (PPA) has rejected the government demand to reduce the markup of poultry products by 0.75%, Central Chairman PPA Dr Mohammad Aslam said.

If the poultry industry is not supported by the banks, then about one million people will become jobless and thousands of poultry farms will be shutdown.

He said that poultry industry in Pakistan in which private sector has invested more than PKR750 billion and has given employment to about 2.5 million people, says a press release. The poultry sector is providing chicken and eggs at affordable prices, where it meets the physical requirements of the protein and also contributes to the demand for meat.

The government should reschedule the bank loans to protect the national poultry industry. The government should give subsidy to poultry farmers and wave off their loans. If the government does not pay attention to this issue, there may be several times increase in the price of chicken and eggs in the next two months. The government should take necessary steps before the poultry crisis occurs in the country.

Dr Muhammad Aslam said that due to the bank's markup and the devaluation of the rupee, the cost of poultry farmers has increased by 50%. Despite these problems we are providing poultry products to people at cheaper rates. They said that export of poultry products due to the coronavirus has stopped. In addition, marriage halls and restaurants have been shut down. Apart from these, with the airlines shut down, the consumption has dropped significantly.

He said in view of these conditions, farmers are suffering from loss throughout the country. The poultry farms have stopped feeding. They are currently forced to shut down their business due to low production.

Dr Aslam demanded of the government to give attention to the issues of the poultry industry on a serious note to resolve their problems.