Production cost hits poultry industry
By Lalin FERNANDOPULLE
The poultry industry which provides employment to over one million
people will face a major setback due to the high cost of production,
said Chairman, All Island Poultry Association, Dr. D. D. Wanasinghe.
He said there was a sharp drop in chicken consumption due to the high
cost of poultry feed. Over 50 per cent of the poultry feed consists of
maize which is imported at a high price.
“The poultry industry has to pay 25 per cent Cess on imported maize.
The industry has been heavily taxed and there are no incentives
granted through the budget. Over 75,000 farmer families depend on the
poultry industry as a self-employment livelihood and around 100,000 are
input suppliers”, Dr. Wanasinghe said.
Prices of eggs and chicken have not increased to the level of what it
should be compared to the drastic hike in prices of poultry feed. The
price of an egg is around Rs. 11 which is not a break even price for
farmers.
He said the Poultry Association has held discussions with officials
of the Ministry of Livestock Development on the need to reduce the cost
of production which will help sustain the poultry industry.
“There has been more attention on the dairy industry than the poultry
industry.
The Ministry of Livestock Development is focusing on increasing the
production of milk and not adequately supporting the poultry industry”,
he said.
Dr. Wanasinghe said Sri Lanka is not affected by the bird flu (Avian
Influenza) H5N1 but cannot rule out the risk of birds being affected by
the epidemic spread through migratory birds.
According to reports over 60 per cent of the infected birds in the
neighbouring countries have died. Several birds in India, Pakistan,
Bangladesh, Nepal and Burma have been killed by the deadly virus.
“The Veterinary Research Institute has launched a surveillance
program to inspect places where migratory birds settle to take
precaution on the spread of the disease”, he said. There has never been
an attack of the avian flu on birds in Sri Lanka. Precautions have been
taken to prevent the spread of the disease in the country.
The Food and Agriculture Organisation and the World Bank have granted
funds to set up surveillance systems and train poultry farmers to detect
the behaviour of backyard birds.
“Poultry farmers will be assisted to build cages to prevent
contracting the virus from infected migratory birds”, he said.
An official of the Health Ministry said that steps have been taken to
monitor the situation in the region and prevent the spread of the
disease. The H5N1 virus spreads primarily through migratory birds and
infected poultry material.
|