A chicken mafia is operating in the country these days and because of this, the price of a kilo of chicken will rise up to Rs. 900 during the New Year season in April, Sri Lanka Eggs Producers’ Association (SLEA) Chairman Sarath Rathnayake said.
He was speaking at a meeting of poultry farmers of the Kurunegala District yesterday in Bingiriya, Kurunegala.
The prices of poultry feed have gone up exorbitantly. Therefore, small-scale poultry farmers are leaving the business, he said.
Five large-scale poultry companies have geared up an artificial chicken shortage. They own large deep freezers to store chicken. A kilo of chicken is sold at Rs.550 in the open market now.
Union Executive Director S.M. Premaratne said that the wholesale egg price is Rs. 12 and the production cost of an egg is Rs. 15. Therefore, poultry farmers loss Rs. 3 from each egg they sold, he said.
The Ministries that are set up to look after the poultry farmers are now indifferent towards self-employed people in the Kurunegala District, he said.
About 10,000 small-scale poultry farmers of the Kurunegala District have decided to leave the industry as they cannot bear the ever increasing cost of production , Premaratne said.
