Prices of local poultry have seen an unprecedented rise over the last few days, bringing the price of one kilogram of poultry to LE20. As a result, Egypt has for the first time begun importing cheaper poultry from Oman, with lower prices. The price of local poultry has doubled over the last few days, said a source at the Ministry of Trade and Industry, who explained that the price of one kilo rose from LE7.5 before the end of last December to around LE20 per kilo currently. Meanwhile, one kilo of Omani poultry costs LE14. According to the ministry official, poultry farmers attribute the price increase to problems in providing adequate heating, which has led to birds dying. Farmers have increased prices in order to recoup their losses from those birds that died of the cold. Abdel Aziz el-Sayed, head of the poultry section at the Cairo Chamber of Commerce, said the prices of local poultry stabilized yesterday at LE9.5 per kilo. El-Sayed said he was unsure why market prices are still higher. He urged monitoring bodies to punish violators and enforce standards to control the market. The government had previously said it would lift customs on imported poultry if prices continue to increase, but no such steps have been taken and customs still stand at 30 percent. Khaled Abu Ismail, former head of the Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce, said it was unlikely that any studies are being carried out to examine the current customs on imported frozen poultry. If customs are lifted, the price difference between local and imported poultry will widen to 60 percent, industry sources predict. El-Sayed said that traders have already imported around 1500 tons of frozen poultry from Oman. Translated from the Arabic Edition.
