Frederick Hanciles of Florick Agricultural Enterprise in Gloucester has complained of how imported eggs are determining the price of locally produced eggs. “Our price is very low … it is the imported eggs that are determining our local market price. I am frustrated, imagine after spending so much on feeds and worst of it government is not protecting our industry in any way” Hanciles grumbled. He said that prices for chicken feeds have gone up, whilst noting that before the rainy season he bought a bag of maize for Le250,000 and concentrate which he usually buys at Le400,000 a bag is now being sold at Le430,000.
“The prices are not even going down they are increasing, imagine after a farmer has spent so much on feeds, when it is time to sell the product the buyers now tell you that they will only pay Le300,000 per cartoon, we are not making any profit” he said. The price for the locally produced eggs was going for Le440,000 per cartoon and with the imported eggs flooding the market local poultry farmers are now forced to sell at Le300,000 according to Hanciles.
Asked whether he has a market with supermarkets, he said no and that some other farmers do but for him he deals primarily with local traders especially within the village and down Freetown who buy eggs from him. “People do not care about the importance of the local egg they are only concerned about the price. And now that the price of imported egg is down they are not even coming to me. I was coping with demand from traders of shops within the village but with the imported eggs now they are no longer coming” said Hanciles.
Hanciles said he took ten cartoon eggs down Freetown but couldn’t sell even a cartoon even though he asked for as low as Le350,000 but he was met with a resounding no from the traders. At this time he said that he should be planning for the Christmas market as he wants to buy day old broilers, so that market will be available by Christmas but sales has turned into something else for him.
“I am not the only one suffering but with the lack of government support we are not going anywhere” he said. Alusine Kabia a local trader at Garrison Street market said that he still buys local egg at Le330,000 and imported egg at Le315,000 (when buying more than one cartoon) or Le320,000 (per cartoon).
Emmanuel B. Kongoh, Acting Director Foreign Trade at the Ministry of Trade said that there are many issues involved but promised that the ministry will engage the poultry farmers, “we have an open market and all we have to do is compete.”
By Zainab Iyamide Joaque