Malaysia again extended the subsidy for the poultry industry until December 2022 to stabilise the price of whole chicken and eggs, as stated by the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industries (MAFI).

According to a recent USDA GAIN report, Government of Malaysia (GOM) allocations for chicken and egg subsidies from February to December 2022 will amount to RM1.233 billion (USD$265.16 million).

The production subsidy was originally introduced by MAFI on February 5, 2022, and intended to last for four months as a stopgap measure to manage the price of poultry products. The program had an initial budget allocation of RM528.52 (USD$113.66) million. Since then, the GOM has slightly increased the subsidy provided to chicken farmers from RM0.60 (USD$0.13) per kilogram and RM0.05 (USD$0.01) per egg produced. The GOM also raised the ceiling prices from earlier this year to give more leeway to producers. Overall total GOM expenditure in supporting and maintaining the price of whole poultry and egg in 2022 will be RM1.233 billion (USD$265.16 million).

As the poultry industry’s struggles continued into June with escalating costs of production, the GOM took several actions to assuage fears of poultry shortages. First, the GOM extended the subsidy multiple times. The GOM then banned export of all chicken products starting June 1, 2022, while simultaneously easing requirements for companies to be approved to import chicken products to Malaysia.

The GOM has gradually begun to lift the export ban through unscheduled phases. Restrictions on chicken products (nuggets and sausages) were removed in mid-June 2022 and for live broiler commercial chickens on October 10, 2022. For whole chicken carcasses, chicken parts, and live day-old chicks, the export ban is still in place.