August 16, 2023

Iranian poultry farmers protest government's failure to provide animal feed

Iranian poultry farmers congregated outside the country's Ministry of Agriculture on Saturday to protest against the government's inability to provide animal feed, Iran International reported.

Despite having paid for soybean and corn inputs over a year ago, the group of farmers from poultry production units in Qazvin province have yet to receive their orders from the Ministry of Agriculture. They have not been reimbursed. These delays have led to cumulative losses totaling IRR 100,000 billion (~US$200 million; IRR 10,000= US$0.24).

The protestors held placards berating the Ministry for placing them in a financially challenging situation, pushing them to their breaking point.

The farmers also raised a notable concern about government agencies resorting to purchasing their produced poultry at significantly reduced prices through coercive tactics and threats.

Supply of livestock and poultry production inputs remains a systemic and ongoing issue in Iran. It has been more than a year since subsidies were reduced and cuts were made to the allocation of discounted foreign currency to essential goods importers. This has led to a cycle of shortages, delivery delays, and unavailability of necessary production inputs, negatively impacting the livelihoods of the country's livestock and poultry producers.

-      Iran International