Prices of eggs at the wholesale level have been cut by 35 paise to Rs 2.75 a piece to clear the backlog of over 8 crore eggs piled up on account of Sabarimala season.
P. Selvaraj, Chairman, National Egg Coordination Committee (NECC), Namakkal zone, said that there was a slowdown in poultry consumption after the bird flu outbreak in Karnataka. Sale of egg in Kerala — the second biggest market for eggs from Namakkal — has dropped by about a fourth from its usual one crore eggs a day after the bird flu outbreak.Added to this were the onset of Sabarimala season and the austere month of Karthigai when people abstain from non-vegetarian food.Meanwhile, there is a pick-up in consumption in the North on the onset of winter and the trade is confident that this price cut will boost offtake and things will look up soon.The NECC has advised poultry farmers to sell 65-week-old hens for meat, as it feels that the culling of birds seven weeks in advance will reduce production that will match market requirements and help farmers realise better profits. NECC’s prices for layer birds has inched up to Rs 40 (Rs 39), while the Broiler Coordination Committee has trimmed the cull bird prices to Rs 47 (Rs 50) owing to over-production and subdued demand.