Lanka's poultry industry in full swing again

by Elmo Leonard

Sri Lanka's poultry industry is now limping back to its pre-bird flu scare, the trade said. Fear in the minds of some consumers, paralysed the industry when consumption plummeted by 50 percent. It had a ripple impact and ran down the line of the industry from August 2005 to February this year.

The most hit were smalltimers and some farmers who could not repay bank loans. Such people have lost the land they mortgaged to banks as collateral to obtain loans, chairman, All Island Poultry Association (AIPA) Dr D.D. Wanasinghe said.

Dr Wanasinghe feels that irresponsible journalism bore an adverse impact on the consumers' mind, but thanked government authorities for rallying round to counter "poor journalism." Sri Lanka's poultry industry is credited with an investment of Rs 180 billion, including poultry farms, freezing plants, transport lorries and the like, employing 75,000 farmer families and 100,000 input suppliers.

Also the industry pays annual taxes of Rs 80 million to government, Dr Wanasinghe said. The industry also plays an important economic role, with a large part of those in the industry being rural women, while it keeps rural people employed and prevented migration into metropolises.

Poultry droppings is considered a good fertiliser for upcountry vegetables, substituting imports of inorganic fertiliser.

Sri Lanka's per capita consumption of chicken is the highest in South Asia, being 55 eggs and 4.5 kilos of chicken, per person per year according to WHO and FAO statistics. But, this falls far below the world average of 110 eggs and 10 kilos of chicken per person per year, according to WHO.

Sri Lanka's average price of an egg at Rs 6 and chicken at Rs 210 per kilo is relatively low and the lowest cost of animal protein in the country, Dr Wanasinghe said.

AIPA has now asked the authorities to grant a VAT holiday for the poultry industry for two years, to enable the industry to expand and provide more employment in the process.

The industry argues that 15 percent VAT is paid at four points, at the trade of day-old chicks, on feed, the sale of live poultry and sale of chicken meat. But, it is estimated that government gets Rs 32 per kilo in taxes. If this money stays in the hands of the industry, it will augur well for speedy development, Dr Wanasinghe said.