Following the tariff revisions on water and electricity and the tax surge, the price of chicken will have to be increased again, said All Ceylon Poultry Businessmen’s Association.
“Water and electricity tariffs are increasing from this month. The Poultry Industry consumes a lot of water and electricity. With these surges, VAT has also increased from 12 per cent to 15 per cent. A new security tax of 2.5 per cent has also been imposed. That can be an addition which results in an increase of about 7.5 per cent to the final product. Considering all the circumstances, there is a possibility of the price of chicken being increased depending on the increase in the production cost,” said Union President Ajith Gunasekara.
He added: “We will discuss the matter with the Minister on Monday, especially on how to remove the control price on eggs. Due to the control price on eggs, about 50 per cent of producers have left the industry by now. They even release egg-laying creatures to the market for meat. The Agriculture Minister has given us a discussion on this matter on Monday. Then we will inform the Ministry in this regard.”
Gunasekara also noted that nevertheless, the price of chicken and eggs can be slashed if the government intervenes and provides reliefs.
MIAP
