Malaysian breeders want mechanism to stabilise price of chicken feed

PETALING JAYA (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - Malaysian chicken breeders want a better mechanism to stabilise the price of chicken feed and to expedite subsidy payment, after the government's move to remove subsidy for chicken breeders beginning July 1.

Chicken breeder Mohd Fathi Jais, 49, said that the government must help local chicken breeders by stabilising and making chicken feed more affordable in the market.

He said that the price of chicken feed has been going up since 2020.

"If the cost of chicken feed is high, it will push (up) the price of breeding chickens... During the last season, I sustained losses of about RM60,000 (S$18,840) due to low-quality chicken feed resulting in my chickens not growing as big as expected by the time they were ready for market," he said on Thursday (May 2).

Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob has announced that the government will no longer provide subsidies to chicken breeders from July 1. Instead, it will be channelled directly to the people who are in need of assistance, especially those in the so-called B40 group, or those in the lowest income bracket, adding that this was aimed at ensuring the people were not burdened by the hike in chicken prices.

Mr Mohd Fathi, who has been in the industry since 2018, said that the government also needed to look into ways to facilitate and expedite the payment of subsidies to chicken breeders who applied previously.

"I already applied in February this year but now, it is already June and I still have yet to receive the subsidy," added the chicken breeder, who has a poultry farm in Ijuk, Selangor.

He said that the cost to breed one 2.2kg chicken is estimated at RM12 each.

"If the cost of chicken feed goes up, it will be difficult for us," he added.

Another chicken breeder, who wanted to be known only as Mr Tan, 45, said the authorities should make it easier for new breeders to get the licence to breed chickens.

"On top of that, the government can consider providing a more reasonable rate to sell whole chickens.

"We are also looking for foreign workers for our farms," he said.

Federation of Malaysian Consumers Associations deputy president Mohd Yusof Abdul Rahman said it was acceptable for the government to do away with the subsidy for chicken breeders since there was not much response for it.

"It could be because many of them are big players. Perhaps, it is better for (the subsidy) to be used for others, especially those in the B40 group," he said.

However, he hoped the government would continue to find the best ways to ensure that the supply of chicken would remain stable while the prices were affordable for consumers.