Price of chicken meat has increased by Rs 30 per kilogram in three days due to Eid-e-Milad-un-Nabi festivities and beginning of marriage season in Punjab. It has risen from Rs 135 per kg to Rs 166 per kg in retail market of the provincial capital without any government check or control.
Former President Pakistan Poultry Association (PPA) Abdul Basit told Business Recorder here on Monday that increase in chicken prices dictated by the market forces of demand and supply has become an annual ritual with kicking of marriage seasons and annual religious festivities.
He said 25,000 poultry farms across the country produce 3 million chicks daily and contribute Rs 400 billion to the poultry sector every year. Livelihood of 1.5 million households is linked with the poultry farming and chicken meat trade. He said chicken meat is an alternative to mutton and beef because of its availability and affordable price. He said price of chicken meat at Rs 166 per kg is still Rs 100 less than the price of beef. He said Pakistan Poultry Association is concerned over imposition of 3.5 percent withholding tax on trading of agricultural produce as it would result in increase in the prices of poultry feed and chicken meat.
He said agricultural produce constitutes 60 to 65 percent of the poultry feed and imposition of withholding tax would result in increase of Rs 35 in the poultry feed bag and an addition of around Rs 7-8 per kilogram in the chicken meat prices. Basit, an expert of poultry farming and trade, urged the government to exempt the poultry industry from the proposed Reformed General Sales Tax (RGST) as it is agro based industry and providing cheaper meat to fulfil the protein needs of the masses.
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