New Delhi: Amid growing fears of the deadly bird flu, chicken and egg prices saw a sharp dip as vendors face threat over the sale of poultry products. The demand for chickens and chicken products has decreased by more than 70 per cent while prices have dropped by nearly 50 per cent.
Poultry industry has been the worst-hit in north India after the movement of poultry products were restricted from one state to another. Notably, both Delhi and Himachal Pradesh banned the import of hens from other states.
Broiler chicken price has come down from Rs 130-140 to Rs 85-105 per kg in Delhi NCR, from Rs 82 to Rs 58 per kg in Maharashtra. In Gujarat, chicken prices have fallen to Rs 65, while it has dropped to Rs 70 in Tamil Nadu. Similarly, in case of eggs, rates around the country have dropped by nearly 15 to 20 per cent, from an average of Rs 60 a dozen to an average of less than Rs 50 per dozen.
The cases of bird flu in poultry chickens have so far been found only in Haryana while in most other states, traces have been found in wild birds or migratory birds and in some cases, in poultry ducks.
Poultry Federation of India President, Ramesh Khatri, told IANS that the primary reason was the falling demand for chicken and eggs over the past week. Khatri said the primary reason for the falling demand for chicken is that the movement of poultry from Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi and Jammu & Kashmir has been halted from one state to another.
Since 2006, almost every winter, Avian Influenza, a common cold disease has been found in birds somewhere or the other.
However, officials have tried to allay fears of those consuming poultry products, saying there is no risk of infection from fully cooked chicken, or boiled and cooked eggs as the virus cannot withstand high temperatures.