Nine years ago, Kawsar Ahmed started a poultry farm in Savar with just Tk3,000, beginning with 1,000 chicks. Over time, he grew his business to manage a farm with 30,000 poultry.
However, in 2022, a sharp increase in poultry feed prices forced him to sell his broiler chickens at a loss of 10%-20%, despite paying high prices for chicks.
As a result, the number of poultry on his farm has dropped from 30,000 to just 10,000.
"It's not just me; this is the reality for thousands of poultry farm owners," Kawsar said. "We are losing interest, running into losses, and closing farms.”
He mentioned that a small farmer’s cost of production is 160 Taka per kg, but most of the time they have to sell between 140 and 150 Taka per kg and lose money.
He was speaking at a roundtable discussion titled “Bangladeshi Poultry Industry: Prospects and Challenges,” organized by Dhaka Tribune in collaboration with Kazi Farms.
The event, held at the Krishibid Institution Bangladesh (KIB) on Thursday, brought together stakeholders to discuss the challenges facing the poultry industry, including risks to farmers, supply chain inefficiencies, and regulatory issues.
Speakers at the event pointed out the urgent need for a National Poultry Board to address the challenges and risks faced by the industry.
They estimated that around 60,000 poultry farmers have closed their businesses due to financial losses and lack of motivation. Such a board, they argued, could facilitate decisions based on factual analysis and discussion of the industry’s realities.
Kazi Zahin Hasan, director of Kazi Farms Limited, explained that the poultry market is competitive.
He said: "Thousands of farmers sell chicken and eggs every day. An economist would describe this as a textbook example of a competitive market. In such markets, prices naturally rise when demand increases or supply falls. Government agencies should conduct economic analysis before they accuse companies of manipulating prices. In any competitive market, price increases usually happen because because there is a shortage, not because of a cartel.”
He said, “A syndicate is not possible in this market. Thousands of producers sell chicken and eggs. Thousands of traders buy chicken and eggs from produers and re-sell them. If a few producers try to sell at a higher price, the traders will not simply buy from those producers.”
He also said, “Supply is not constant, and demand is not constant. So it is natural that sometimes supply will not match demand, and market prices will fluctuate. ”
Kazi Zahin Hasan emphasized the need for surveys to understand how demand and supply change seasonally. He said, "In October, the price of eggs was high because many egg farms were affected by floods. Egg production decreased, creating a shortage, which caused prices to rise.
"On the other hand, during winter, egg prices are typically low because more vegetables are available. Consumers then buy more vegetables and fewer eggs. That means egg demand falls, causing prices to fall," Hasan explained.
He said that when there is an over-supply of day-old broiler chicks, the market price falls to Tk 20 per chick, and hatcheries make losses. “If a cartel controlled the market for chicks, the chicks would never be sold at a loss.”
He explained that the fluctuation in the price of chicks is unavoidable. “Demand for day-old broiler chicks is high when the broiler chicken price is high. At that time, all farmers want to buy chicks. The demand for broiler chicks falls, and the price of broiler chicks falls, when the price of broiler chicken falls. So demand for chicks is not constant. Supply of chicks is not constant either. Parent stock chickens start producing chicks at 25 weeks of age. Chick production increases til about 33 weeks of age, then falls as the parent stock chickens get older. As supply and demand are both variable, there is often a mismatch. So the variation in the price of chicks is natural.”
Prof Rushad Faridi, assistant professor of Economics at Dhaka University, stressed the need for evidence-based reporting.
"We are not denying the possibility of price manipulation, but understanding how it occurs requires proper analysis. Agencies like the Competition Commission and Consumer Rights often assume that a price increase is the result of a cartel or syndicate. However, before any government official concludes that a market is being controlled by a syndicate, thorough market studies should be conducted," he said.
Prof Rushdi further said: “Allegations of syndicates controlling market prices must be supported by data. Misreporting can harm the industry and create unnecessary panic.”
Md Shariful Haque, deputy director of the Farm Branch at the Department of Livestock Services, emphasized the government's commitment to protecting farmers and bridging the gap between producers and consumers.
He said: "We have several programs to support farmers across the country and promote private and commercial poultry development. However, the market system faces significant challenges. There is a large discrepancy between the production cost and the consumer selling price of eggs. This gap often leads to criticism."
He further explained: "Around September to October, the demand for eggs rises while supply in vegetable and fish markets decreases, causing an unreasonably high price. Supply chains and the price gap must be addressed to ensure market stability."
Mahbubur Rahman, president of the Breeders Association of Bangladesh (BAB), said that the egg business is not like other trades, it is a risky industry.
He pointed out that middlemen in the supply chain often profit the most, while farmers bear losses most of the year.
“Farmers only make a profit for brief periods, and even this profit becomes the focus of discussions,” he said.
Mahbubur warned that additional regulatory constraints or legal actions could further discourage
farmers and deter investment in the industry.
Barrister ABM Hamidul Mishbah said: Competition Commission must conduct industry specific market analysis, which will help them to identify the main reasons for price increases.
“BCC has filed baseless cases against numbers of large poultry producers and fined them without conducting any economic analysis, and caused injustice to the poor companies. This kind of government actions discourage investors that negatively impact production and supply, which ultimately leads to price increase,” he added.
Khalid Abu Naser, former director of the Bangladesh Competition Commission, said that some of the decisions of the commission are questionable, and that no company with a market share less than 10% should be accused of manipulating prices.
Aanjan Majumder, chief executive officer of Bangladesh Organic Hub, highlighted the recurring challenges faced by stakeholders in the poultry production process due to conflicting interests.
He said: "There are 10 ministries and 14 departments which poultry stakeholders have to deal with. A National Poultry Board needs to be established so stakeholders can deal with one regulator." He also said that poultry production is affected by hot weather and floods, which are effects of climate change.
AKM Fahim Mashroor, former President of the Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services (BASIS) said that as there is sometimes a shortage of eggs, and sometimes a shortage of day-ol chicks, the solution is to import these goods for a limited time whenever there is a shortage.
Debashis Nag, secretary of the Bangladesh Poultry Industries Central Council, said that his organization is an association, not a business, but it was also accused of involvement in price manipulation because they shared market price information on facebook. He said he asked the Commission to show him which government rule was violated by sharing price information on social media, but they were not able to show him.
Nazmul Hasan of Quality Feeds Ltd, along with other poultry farmers, and journalists, including Sultan Mahmud and Khawaza Main Uddin, also attended the event.
It was clear that the demand was uncertain. Speakers mentioned that according to the DLS, the demand for eggs is 104 eggs per capita per year, or 2 eggs per week. However, others say that the demand is much higher. However, a poultry farmer in attendance privately jotted in his notebook: "Even I cannot afford to eat two eggs a week."
