Claim poultry farm ownersSome leading poultry companies made additional profits of Tk 5.20b in last two weeks

Poultry farm owners on Saturday claimed some leading poultry companies made additional profits of Tk 5.20 billion in last two weeks by raising prices of poultry items including farm eggs and broiler chickens illogically.

Egg prices hit an all-time high Tk 160-180 a dozen few days back, marking a hike Tk 30-50 per dozen.

Broiler chicken price shot up to Tk 200-210 a kg with Tk 50-60 a kg hike during the period, according to market sources.

However, the leading poultry companies claimed the middlemen were mainly responsible for such tectonic hike.

Bangladesh Poultry Industries Central Council (BPICC) in its press release said brown farm egg  production cost increased to Tk 9.73 a piece from Tk 8.0 a piece six months back.

Middlemen in the city level were making high profits battering the consumers, said BPICC in the press release.

But Bangladesh Poultry Association (BPA), an organisation of poultry farm owners, claimed on Saturday that few big companies made Tk 1.18 billion from surge in farm egg price.

BPA President Md Suman Hawladar at a press conference also said by raising price of broiler chicken by Tk 10-12, companies fetched Tk 1.72 billion and Tk 2.34 billion from day-old chicks (DOCs) additional in last two weeks.

The meeting titled 'Volatile market of egg and chicken: Press conference of deprived farm owners and entrepreneurs', organised by BPA, was held at Sagar Runi Auditorium of Dhaka Reporters Unity.

The association said marginal farmers are in a fix amid the rising trend of feed, DOCs, transport costs.

They said load shedding has come as an another blow to run business.

Secretary of the organisation Ilias Khandaker said only 40,000 farms are now active as 20,000 were closed in last two and half years for the pandemic.

Vice-president of the association Bappy Kumar Dey said apart from city wholesales and farms, the government should also bring big farms under strict monitoring.

The association said the country's farm egg production is now 45-50 million pieces daily of which big ten companies produce more than 60 percent.