September 22, 2020

Myanmar broiler sector suffers daily loss of US$40,000 as prices plunge

Farmgate prices of broiler chickens have fallen below breeding and production costs due to the recurring COVID-19 outbreak, and breeders are now making about K50 million (~US$38,000; K1 = US$0.00076) in losses daily, says U Kyaw Win, chair of the Broiler Chicken Breeders Association, Myanmar Times reported.

"There isn't any plan in place to process the poultry as value-added products. So, the breeders have no other option but to sell the chicks when they reach a certain age. During this time, the prices are continuously falling due to lower demand as a result of COVID-19, but the costs are still high, resulting in losses," says U Thein Myint, vice-president of Myanmar Livestock Federation.

He adds that with COVID-19 cases on the rise, breeders began cutting their production rate, since it takes at least 1.5 months to wind down production.

Current production cost is about K2,700 per viss (~1.63 kg) while market price is about K1,800 per viss. In contrast, prices were as high as K5,500 per viss in June and July, before they declined from mid-August when a second wave of COVID-19 infections hit Rakhine state.

Current chicken consumption in Myanmar is 14 million chicks per month, or about 500,000 chicks per day.