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High prices of feed take toll on Rangpur poultry farms

High prices of poultry feed are taking a huge toll on poultry farms in Rangpur.

Owner of Rangpur Poultry Farm Noor Mohammad Sirajul said in the face of soaring feed prices he has to spend extra Tk 1000-Tk1500 on feeding his 2500 chickens a day. "Now I need to sell all the birds to get rid of the losses. Prices of farm birds are also falling sharply in the market due to avian influenza fear."

Poultry feed ingredients such as soybean cake, rice wastage (particles of rice left after husking) and protein of all brands are being sold at higher prices in the market.

According to market sources, soybean is now being sold at Tk 1750 to Tk 1800 per bag (50 kg) against Tk 1200 to Tk 1300 in January-February last year, and rice wastage at Tk 750 per bag (50 kg) against Tk 600 last year.

Around 25 to 30 percent poultry farms in Rangpur district were shut down in the last six months due to high prices of poultry feed, and many are on the verge of closure, sources at the District Livestock Office said.

Owner of Farm Line at Boldipukur under Mithapukur upazila Shah Enamur Rahman said if the prices of feeds do not come down, they have to close farms.

“Although feed prices are rising, prices of eggs remain same compared to last year's,” Enamur said, adding that the prices of meat of poultry birds are decreasing due to avian influenza fear.

Poultry feed trader of Rangpur municipality market Jahangir Alam Khan said prices of some proteins increased by 100 percent.

For example, he said dicalcium phosphate, the main protein ingredient used in poultry feed, is being sold at Tk 1200 to Tk 1250 per bag (25 kg) against Tk 600 to Tk 650 last year.

Livestock department of the district fears that all the mid-size poultry farms will be closed in a few months if the prices of poultry feed and protein do not come down.

District Livestock Officer of Rangpur Dr Roushanuzzaman said, "We are really anxious about the situation prevailing in the poultry farms in the district. The farmers cannot make up the loss they are incurring everyday."

A majority of entrepreneurs will be forced to shut down their businesses unless the government provides subsidy for poultry feed ingredients, Moshiur Rahman, convener of Bangladesh Poultry Industries Co-Ordination Committee, comprising representatives from nine associations of the industry, told The Daily Star recently.

The prices of poultry feed ingredients such as maize, soybean have been rising in the international market on increased use of bio-fuel instead of fossil fuel, he said.

“We are now producing 40 lakh (4 million) of one-day old poultry chickens a week instead of 65 lakh (6.5 million) a year ago,” he said, adding that the sales of poultry chickens now stood at about 35 lakh per week.

With Tk 5500 crore in total investment till mid-December 2007, the sector, supporting five million people directly or indirectly through 1.5 lakh poultry farms, constitutes 1.6 percent of Bangladesh GDP, according to the SouthAsia Enterprise Development Facility (SEDF), a multi-donor facility managed by the International Finance Corporation of the World Bank Group.

Tags · India · Poultry Farm · Rangpur · Feed Prices

26.01.2008. 04:07