Eggs-tra expensive prices

LAYER poultry farmer Suwardi, 48, struggled to cope after the price of chicken feed barrelled 30% higher since September 2020.

Last August, he had to sell 2,000 of his 8,000 layer chickens on his farm in Kendal, Central Java, along with three cows, to keep his business afloat.

In the previous months, he had endured monthly losses of around 36 million rupiah (RM10,800).

But as the price of eggs sold by farmers to distributors rose to 25,000 rupiah (RM7.50) per kilo in early June, compared with 20,000 rupiah (RM6) per kilo last December, he now not only breaks even but also reaps a profit of between 5% and 10%, similar to what he earned two years ago.

This comes on the back of people’s improved purchasing power as Indonesia’s economy recovered after Covid-19 curbs were eased, and a higher demand for eggs.

“The new equilibrium is good for poultry farmers and does not burden consumers,” said Suwardi, who goes by one name.

In comparison, he noted that the price of chilli, a key ingredient in Indonesian cuisine, had gone up from 35,000 rupiah (RM10.50) per kilo to as high as 100,000 rupiah (RM30) per kilo.

“We are willing to sell eggs at 20,000 rupiah per kilo, but the government must ensure the availability of the poultry feed at an affordable level instead of letting it be under a free market,” said Suwardi, whose farm yields 300kg of eggs daily.Poultry feed is the main cost in layer poultry farming. Its cost has soared as the supply of ingredients such as wheat, corn and soya bean has been impacted by the Ukraine-Russia war, as well as export restrictions by a few countries.

Inevitably, the rising costs of egg and poultry farming have been passed down to consumers, who are already contending with costlier staples such as shallots and chilli.

In Jakarta, the price of chicken eggs in traditional markets shot up by 30% to 30,000 rupiah (RM9) per kilo this week alone.

A similar increase has occurred in Bogor and Bekasi, West Java, according to food stall owners.

“Normally, the price declines after Lebaran,” said Mukroni, who owns two food stalls in Bekasi, referring to Hari Raya Aidilfitri. “What is happening now is an anomaly.”The chairman of the Association of Indonesian Traditional Food Stalls said fellow food stall owners were upset and trying to figure out what they could sell if the prices of raw ingredients continued to hike.

He hoped the government would actively intervene to stabilise commodity prices.

Indonesia’s consumer price index was up 3.55% year on year in May, the highest in nearly five years, primarily driven by upticks in the prices of eggs, fish and shallots as well as air fare. — The Straits Times/ANN