Poultry Farmers Shift Price Blame

BARBADOS - Don't blame us! That's the cry from small and medium-sized chicken producers struggling to break even and make a modest profit from whole chicken sales at an average $3.50 per pound.
calendar icon 12 November 2007
clock icon 2 minute read

Beset by escalating prices on the world market, whopping energy bills, costly feed and sweltering climatic conditions, poultry owners lament that they too are facing trying times.

"My challenge is mainly with feed. The price is too high for the conversion [from feed to one pound of meat] to really reduce the price of a whole chicken, "Sunrise Chicks director Anthony Spencer complained.

With an annual feed bill of $1 million and a $60 000 energy bill to keep his chicks in a cool and comfortable growth environment, Spencer said it was challenging just to stay operational.

He suggested that small farmers, unable to develop and patent their own high-protein formula with feed processors and distributors, were disadvantaged by bigger farmers who were in a position to give their birds premium quality grain.

Source: NationNews.com

© 2000 - 2024 - Global Ag Media. All Rights Reserved | No part of this site may be reproduced without permission.