Chicken in Malaysia being sold below ceiling price set by government

PETALING JAYA, Selangor – The price of standard processed chicken is much cheaper now with suppliers selling lower than the ceiling price set by the government.

Mr Mahadi Mubin, a chicken supplier based in Selangor, said there was a drop of 60 sen (S$0.17) to RM8.80 per kg.

“As suppliers, we still need to bear the cost of feed, which is still high. To make a profit, we have to reduce the price to sell more,” he said.

On June 10, the government decided to maintain the ceiling price of a standard processed chicken at RM9.40.

The Agriculture and Food Security Ministry had initially set July 1 for a “soft landing” to withdraw the ceiling price of chicken and eggs.

Original Penang Kayu Nasi Kandar managing director Burhan Mohamed said chicken prices had been fluctuating in August, and added that the price dropped by 30 sen on Monday and Tuesday.

“The price of chicken last week was about RM8.40 per kg by suppliers. For buyers like us, we just have to purchase as usual despite the fluctuating prices,” he said.

Federation of Livestock Farmers Associations of Malaysia senior adviser Jeffrey Ng said its members were seeing lower demand for chicken.

He said this trend would also see suppliers lowering their prices.

“When there is high supply and low demand, suppliers tend to lower prices to increase sales,” he added.

Meanwhile, Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations (Fomca) chief executive Saravanan Thambirajah said that the current chicken price being well below the fixed limit is good news.

He said there were still isolated cases of chicken being sold above the ceiling price in Perak and Penang.

“There might be factors that add to the cost of the chicken such as logistics. We advise consumers to lodge complaints with the Domestic Trade and Cost of Living Ministry if they are in doubt,” he said. THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK