Cheap imported leg quarters worry chicken farmers

RUDDY MATHISON and CARL GILCHRIST

Local poultry farmers are hopping mad over a pronouncement by Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, Pearnel Charles Jr, that the Government is considering the temporary removal of import duties on chicken leg quarters.

According to the minister, the removal of the duties would allow consumers to purchase leg quarters at significantly cheaper prices than the cost of chicken meat.

"Currently, the price of leg quarters within the local market is at $360 per pound while we would be able to import leg quarters at $100 per pound and have consumers paying roughly $160 per pound," Charles Jr said.

However, local farmers said that the decision could bring them to financial ruin, especially because the price of chicken meat is set to increase again due to higher input costs.

Ramario Grant, who has been in poultry farming for the past eight years, said that the Government should seek to find creative ways to cushion the impact of the increasing input costs on the consumers.

"What the Government could have done better is lift the duties off the raw material that goes into manufacturing the feeds. By lifting the tariff it only augments the problem and creates unfair competition for us who have to pay more for baby chicks, feed, and other things," said Grant who has a farm with 1,500 broiler chickens.

"There is no doubt that small farmers will have to increase their price given the increased overhead that we now have, so for me it is more a matter of how the consumers will react to the increase."

Grant, who presently sells a pound of chicken for $250 per pound, said he will have to mark up his price by about $20 per pound.

On Tuesday, Charles Jr, said that the tariff suspension would "allow Jamaican consumers to purchase at least three times the quantity of poultry meat than they are currently able to afford". However, local poultry farmers are nervous.

Nickeisha Francis, a small farmer from Cherry, a district outside of Kitson Town in St Catherine, said she will not be investing in any chickens after she gets the current batch off her hands.

"It doesn't make any sense. We are not going to be able to compete with the importers of the leg quarters. We have to pay more for baby chickens, feed, medication and everything else. I have been doing this business all my life but I will have to take a pause and see how this plays out," she said.

Francis said a number of small farmers in her community have indicated that they will also cease production and observe for a while.

Similarly, Norris Jackson of Highgate, St Mary, whose farm consists of 500 birds, said the news is unfortunate.

"I heard the news this morning and was upset about it," he said. "I can see myself going into bankruptcy if he does that. If they import the chicken leg quarters our business crumble, all the little farmers business crumble, trust mi," he added.

Jackson said the Government should be focusing on reducing the price of chicken feed to small chicken farmers.

A female chicken farmer, Romain Davis of St Ann, asked how farmers would benefit if Government reduces the tariff.

"The Government needs to meet small farmers part way because what I know everything poor people try in Jamaica, the Government try to destroy it. If they do reduce it we're going to be affected and we don't want to be affected," Davis said.