Hyderabad: Prices of chicken have increased in the city in view of the Eid ul Fitr festival and huge demand for it.
A kilogram of chicken meat is sold for Rs. 240 to Rs. 260 a kilogram in the retail market while the price of live poultry is around Rs. 140 to Rs. 150 a kilogram. The prices had come down to Rs. 220 a kilogram and Rs. 120 for poultry a week ago.
“Due to the Ramzan festival there is huge demand for poultry meat. Farmers are selling it at a higher price to the city market traders. So the burden is passed on to the customers,” said Ghalib Saif, a poultry trader at Chandrayangutta.
In March and April the chicken prices touched around Rs. 300 a kilogram in the market. Poultry farmers attributed it to the increase in cost of poultry feed. Basically the poultry is fed corn and soya and globally its prices increased.
The soaring temperatures are attributing to the rising prices of chicken. “Due to high temperatures the birds are dying in the farms. Farmers are at losses due to it also,” said Aravind Kumar, of a poultry farm at Ibrahimpatnam in Ranga Reddy district.
There are around 10,000 broiler farms in the State and around four crore broilers are produced every month. The produce is supplied to market in the State. In Hyderabad the supply is from Ibrahimpatnam, Kandukuar, Maheshwaram, Kothur, Shamshabad, and other adjoining districts like Sangareddy, Medak, Yadadri Bhuvangiri and Vikarabad.
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