July 8, 2022

 

Philippines' fast food chains affected by chicken shortage

 

Fast food chains in the Philippines such as Jolibee Foods Corp and McDonald's have been unable to serve chicken as the country is affected by a chicken shortage caused by supply chain issues, the Philippine Daily Inquirer reported.

 

In a statement, Jolibee said a number of their stores are unable to sell chicken because of increased consumer demand and limited chicken supply in the market that meets their standards.

 

Customers and restaurant staff members have told the Inquirer that chicken was unavailable at many Jolibee outlets.

 

Elias Jose Inciong, president of the United Broilers and Raisers Association, said the supply of chicken in the nation has been impacted by a number of factors, including the quality of feeds, rising feed input costs, and consumers' shifting preferences away from meat products.

 

But he added that it was still too early to say whether or not there was a widespread shortage.

 

Inciong said the Russia-Ukraine conflict made it more difficult to find high-quality feeds like soy and corn, which led to a decrease in chicken production and quality.

 

He pointed out that local corn and soy prices were at a five-year historical high. In addition to being the primary component of animal feeds, corn is one of the staple foods, ranking second only to rice.

 

He said the country has a problem with feed quality, and it's also more expensive.

 

Inciong said that soy is imported into the Philippines, but because of its "high energy" qualities, yellow corn is preferred by broiler raisers over imported corn.

 

He said corn farmers haven't felt confident in production for the last two years because the African swine fever (ASF) had a significant impact on their market.

 

Inciong said the 2019 ASF outbreak caused a supply surplus and completely wiped out a large portion of their market, which was made up of swine farmers.

 

He also mentioned the pressure put on them to produce more chicken as a result of consumers' "increasing shift" away from pork toward chicken.

 

Inciong said that because pork products have become more expensive, they are struggling to meet the increased demand for chicken.

 

-      Philippine Daily Inquirer