Visakhapatnam: As winter settles in and Christmas approaches, the prices of eggs are soaring while chicken prices are dipping. The consumption of eggs has increased for breakfast during the winter season, and families of devotees of Maladharana, such as Ayyappas, Siva Mala, Govinda Mala, Bhavani Mala, and others, are avoiding the consumption of chicken during the auspicious and holy months of Karthikam (November) and now Margasiram and Dhanurmasam (December to January 14).
The wholesale price of eggs, which was Rs 600 for 100 eggs at the beginning of November, now stands at Rs 650. The main root cause of the increase in egg prices is a shortage of maize. Andhra Pradesh, famously known as ‘The Egg Bowl of India,’ tops the nation in production but lags behind in consumption. Most of its production is exported to other states or foreign nations. The per capita egg consumption in India doubled over the past 20 years and increased a hundredfold over the past 60 years. However, AP’s consumption did not increase.
“We are taking orders for Christmas cakes and other cookies. The price of cocoa has gone up, and now eggs have become expensive. We need to increase the prices of our products to meet our expenses,” a bakery owner in Vizag said.
Egg prices, not only in the Telugu states but also across India, have risen due to winter demand, increasing feed costs, and exports to Bangladesh and Malaysia. Export orders to these countries amounted to nearly 50 million eggs in November and December. In AP and Telangana, egg prices increased by about 20%, with prices rising from Rs 6 to Rs 7 per piece within weeks, according to a member of one of the poultry associations, Naidu. Input costs rose by 30%, with corn prices, a key poultry feed component, doubling from Rs 14 to Rs 28 per kilo over the past three years.
Feed price inflation led to a national increase in egg prices, with wholesale rates Rs 6.5 per piece, and retail prices reaching Rs 7.5 per unit. A poultry owner in Vizianagaram, Tammi Naidu, says that the root cause of the issue is a corn shortage. There is a need to increase corn production by at least 40% or allow free imports.
The average wholesale price of eggs jumped from Rs 585 per 100 eggs in November 2023 to Rs 650 in December 2024. However, AP produces over 450 thousand metric tonnes of poultry meat in a fiscal year, but there are allegations that poultry owners, in a hurry to make profits, are dumping the birds in the market in 28 to 30 days instead of the usual 45 days. This results in low-weight birds and raises public suspicion about the birds, leading to a decline in chicken consumption nowadays.
Source: Times of india
