Amid the skyrocketing price of poultry products aggravated by low production, the Department of Agriculture (DA) has employed necessary interventions to address the problem that is now affecting consumers and other businesses.
Reildrin Morales, officer-in-charge of the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI), said some of the interventions were increasing the production and stabilizing supply and market price, and allowing the inter-island movement from mainland Luzon of day-old chicks, hatching eggs, and ready to lay pullets.
“For day-old chicks and hatching eggs, movement is allowed provided they tested negative for avian influenza (AI) 28 days from the date of sample collection,” said Morales.
For ready-to-play pullets, he movement is allowed provided they also tested negative for AI 14 days from the date of sample collection.
In addition, he noted that the BAI determines the actual supply scenario by working closely with their partners from the private sector in regularly validating the broiler life cycle model.
As to addressing the high cost of agriculture inputs, Morales said DA executives will have dialogues with other countries on possible alternative sources of cheaper feed ingredients.
To support disease prevention of other poultry diseases such as Infectious Body Hepatitis (IBH), Morales said the BAI has already issued special import permits for needed vaccines.
Morales also said the DA has already lifted the temporary ban for poultry products coming from Spain, Denmark, Czech Republic.
Factors affecting prices, supply
Due to the more relaxed Covid-19 pandemic restrictions, he noted the demand for products, such as poultry, has rapidly increased.
"With the economy slowly opening up and creating job opportunities, more consumers have purchasing power to buy meat for their families," said Morales.
As such, he said that the uneven demand-supply situation may also be attributed to the restrictions on the movement of live birds, poultry products, and by-products due to avian influenza cases in some areas.
He said BAI has monitored a decrease in the volume of production due to the high cost of feed inputs along with challenges on other Hepatitis.
"These could also be attributed to stunted growth of poultry birds," the BAI official said.
In the first week of his administration, President Ferdinand "Bongbong" R. Marcos Jr. made a pronouncement that he wants to increase the supply of grains such as rice and corn, ordering the officials of the agriculture department to ensure that there’s ample and affordable supply of the said grains.
Marcos took note of the lack of feed production, saying it is the reason why the country needs to import chicken products.
Due to the lack of feed production, the President said the country will also have to import chicken products.
“And that’s why, that’s why this is really the reason —if you look at it, our production is not sufficient in palay (rice), it’s not sufficient in corn, it’s not sufficient in livestock, it’s not sufficient in fisheries," Marcos said during a media briefing.