Farm gate prices of poultry products up slightly

The farm gate price of poultry and its by products have stabilized after the government assured the consuming public that the H5N6 bird flu strain has a low transmission rate but warned that the industry would still have a long way to go before it recovers.

The Samahang Industriya ng Agrikultura (Sinag) said farm gate price saw a slight increase over the weekend to P30 per kilogram from the lowest level of P15 per kg, which is way below the cost of production.

“So far, prices stabilized a little and this is already a positive development. When consumers learned that the strain is not that virulent compared to the H5N1 strain,” Sinag chairman Rosendo So said in a phone interview.

However, So added that retail prices in wet markets remain the same, which is at P110 to P120 per kg.

While the slight increase is positive for poultry growers, So said it may take a while before farmers can even reach the breakeven price of P65 to P70 per kg.

“We are still far from breakeven, prices are still significantly low. And it depends on how the government can really handle the situation,” said So.

“We want prices to be back to normal as soon as possible, but so far, we do not see big improvements anytime soon,” he added.

Sinag is also banking on the plan of President Duterte to join a chicken boodle fight in San Fernando in Pampanga today to further allay the public’s concern.

“Hopefully after the boodle fight, it will help in the increased buying and consumption of people. It will also help improve prices at the farm gate level,” said So. Duterte will personally eat

balut, chicken, and fried itik to show it is safe to eat chickens and other poultry products. He will also acknowledge the support of the local government units and army, as well as award the first payments to farmers whose fowls were culled.

Furthermore, Sinag is calling on the Departments of Agriculture, Health, Interior and Local Government and Environment and Natural Resources to establish an interagency coordination to improve communication should a similar outbreak happen in the future.

“Should it happen again, at least they are well-prepared. Because if you look at it now, they seem to be scattered and tend to do things on their own. If there’s a coordination between them, they can act on it immediately,” said So.