Poultry farmers in Tamil Nadu are urging the government to facilitate tripartite talks with broiler companies to revise chicken rearing rates. The Tamil Nadu Farmers’ Protection Association is spearheading this call, demanding a minimum rate of INR 15 per kg for broiler chicken, INR 20 per kg for farm country chicken, and INR 5 per bird for quail.
Farmers highlight that poultry companies have maintained a paltry INR 6.50 per kg for cultivation for years, despite soaring electricity and input costs. They claim a state government directive from 2013 to increase wages annually has been ignored. The association also insists on scrapping the Feed Conversion Ratio (FCR) metric and establishing a separate welfare board for poultry workers. They demand that companies unfailingly provide six batches of chicks annually for foster care.
Additionally, farmers are pushing for companies to bear the costs of medications and vaccines, instead of mandating sourcing from specific firms. They also demand that administrative costs be excluded from production costs, and that chicks provided for rearing must not weigh less than 40 grams, accompanied by certified feed.
The association argues that companies, rather than forcing farmers to source feed elsewhere, should take back and return nutritionally enriched feed. Many farmers are struggling to repay bank loans, and the association calls for companies to cover expenses for inputs like coir pith and charcoal. To garner collective support for these demands, the association recently held a consultative meeting of poultry farmers in Batlagundu, Dindigul district.
