CHENNAI: Egg exports from Namakkal, one of India’s largest poultry hubs, have taken a hit due to the ongoing US-Israel war on Iran, leading to heavy losses for farmers, said a report by Daily Thanthi.
The region has over 1,200 poultry farms with around 8 crore laying hens, producing nearly 6 crore eggs daily. Of these, about 80 lakh eggs were exported daily to Gulf countries such as Dubai, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Bahrain, besides markets in Africa and Europe.
However, the conflict, which escalated on the 28th of last month, has disrupted operations at ports and airports in parts of the Gulf after reported attacks on US-linked establishments. This has severely affected egg exports from Namakkal.
As a result, nearly 80 lakh eggs are being stockpiled daily, forcing traders to procure eggs at prices lower than those fixed by the National Egg Coordination Committee (NECC).
Farmers say this has led to the re-emergence of negative pricing in the poultry sector.
“Export demand has dropped due to the war. For over 20 days, procurement prices have remained below Rs 4.50 per egg.
Traders are buying at a further discount of about Rs 0.30 from the NECC price,” farmers said.
With the cost of production estimated at around Rs 5.20 per egg, farmers are incurring an average loss of Rs 1 per egg daily, translating to losses of about Rs 6 crore per day.
Over the past 24 days, total losses have mounted to nearly Rs 144 crore.
Adding to the crisis, demand in domestic markets has weakened due to the ongoing Christian Lent and the recent Ramadan fasting period in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, limiting local absorption of surplus stock.
Farmers said they are attempting to push sales by lowering prices, but warned that continued disruptions could further strain the industry.