Farm-gate chicken prices plunge to record lows, but retail consumers see no relief
Malappuram broiler chicken prices are at an all-time low for farmers, yet consumers pay significantly more at retail, with no regulation on markups.
Malappuram broiler chicken prices are at an all-time low for farmers, yet consumers pay significantly more at retail, with no regulation on markups.
Malappuram broiler chicken prices are at an all-time low for farmers, yet consumers pay significantly more at retail, with no regulation on markups.
Broiler chicken prices at the farm-gate level have hit an unprecedented low in Malappuram district, yet consumers are seeing absolutely no benefit from this drop at retail counters. While local poultry farms sold broiler chickens at ₹76 per kilogram yesterday, retail outlets across the district continued to charge anywhere between ₹110 and ₹130 per kg for live chicken. The retail price for dressed chicken meat was even higher, hovering between ₹128 and ₹160 per kg.
According to representatives from the Kerala Poultry Farmers Association, this is the lowest farm-gate price recorded in recent times. Farmers point to a sharp price reduction by poultry suppliers in neighbouring Tamil Nadu as the primary trigger, compounded by a massive surplus of stock currently held by domestic farms in Kerala. However, local poultry farmers allege a more sinister motive, claiming that out-of-state lobbies are intentionally slashing prices to destabilise Kerala’s independent poultry sector. Whenever local farms have high stock, these external syndicates crash the prices; conversely, they spike the rates when local stock is depleted.
Profiteering and lack of regulation
Khadarali Vatallur, State General Secretary of the Kerala Poultry Farmers Association, explained that even with intermediate markups, the retail prices should be much lower. He noted that if middlemen add ₹10 to the farm-gate price of ₹76 (selling at ₹86), and retailers add another ₹15 margin, the end-consumer price should ideally be much more affordable. Instead, retailers are charging exorbitant rates, capitalising on a lack of price uniformity and fierce, unregulated competition in the market.
This major price discrepancy highlights a complete lack of regulatory oversight in the meat sector. Government authorities rarely conduct market inspections to control these runaway retail prices, leaving consumers with no choice but to pay inflated rates for a basic food commodity while actual farmers run into heavy losses.