June 21, 2013

Pakistani government's intervention to badly affect poultry sector

As controlling prices of poultry products is not mandated in Profiteering and Hoarding Act 1977, Pakistani government's intervention in poultry sector will result in a complete disaster for the industry.

The spokesman of Pakistan Poultry Association (PPA) Abdul Maroof Siddiqui said that all over the world no such example is found to control poultry prices because the prices of poultry products are determined on the basis of supply and demand phenomenon. He said that the poultry association too does not have any role in determining or controlling poultry prices due to this phenomenon.

Siddiqui further said that poultry farms have been incurring huge losses for the last eight months due to selling of chicks at the price of PKR2 to PKR8 (US$0.02 to US$0.08), which resulted in the shutdown of 30 poultry farms in Karachi and its surroundings, and this can be confirmed from livestock department of the province. Therefore, he adds, if the government intervenes to control poultry prices the industry would completely breakdown. "This is the reason the price of chicken is not included in the Profiteering and Hoarding Act 1977 which is implemented in the whole country," he reasoned.

While giving reasons of current increase in the prices of poultry products, he said that it is due to low supply because of loss to poultry farms in the past few months, their shutdown, and sudden increase in demand since the prices of poultry products are based on supply and demand phenomenon.

To fill the demand gap, traders have started supplying chicken to Karachi from Rahim Yar Khan, Bahawalpur, and Multan and the situation will get better soon, he said, adding that the meeting which commissioner recently called did not have any representative from the poultry industry to clear the situation.

He said that the meeting did not consider the economic and marketing factors while determining prices, which is detrimental because those planning to re-establish poultry farms will not dare now in such circumstances when the government is intervening.