Kota Kinabalu: The price of imported chicken feeds has increased by 30 to 40 per cent compared to the same period last year, forcing breeders to pass on some of these expenses to end consumers.
Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Seri Dr Jeffrey Kitingan said the skyrocketing price of imported chicken feeds is due to the market’s higher pricing of raw materials such as corn and soy.
“As a consequence, breeders are forced to cull their herds earlier than usual, resulting in a chain reaction that includes a drop in chicken egg production.
“However, the problem of soaring chicken and egg costs is not just a problem here in Sabah. The higher price of raw materials for animal feeds is a worldwide issue, not a local issue,” he said in a statement, Wednesday.
Jeffrey, who is also Agriculture and Fisheries Minister, said apart from the issue of rising raw material prices, chicken breeders in Sabah also suffer a plethora of additional issues that cause them to restrict production.
Recently, he said, the Department of Veterinary Services (DVS) Director Dr Normah Yusop confirmed that the standard vaccine to prevent the virulent Newcastle Disease (sampar ayam) could not manage the virus’ new strain.
As a result, the virus has killed a large number of birds and has had a direct impact on egg and meat production in Sabah. The virus also caused dwarfism and reduced egg output in chickens that survived the infection.
“To make matters worse, border closures have made it harder to hire foreign labour. Therefore, breeders have been forced to reduce the number of their stocks in proportion to the labourers available,” he said.
Despite the reduced supply, chicken and eggs continue to be high in demand because they are the easiest and cheapest source of protein.
“All food baskets usually always include a tray of eggs for each household, as we all recall. So that exacerbated the shortage of eggs in Sabah,” he said.
While most of these concerns are outside of his Ministry’s purview, Jeffrey assured that the Sabah Government is working with the Federal Government to remedy the supply shortage problem as soon as possible.
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