The Association of Poultry Farmers in Nigeria has urged the Nigerian government to establish a special intervention fund for its members to significantly reduce egg prices.
The Director General of the Association, Onallo Akpa, made this request on Friday in an interview with Channels Television, monitored by DAILY POST.
His appeal comes as the price of a crate of eggs has risen to around N6,500 from less than N2,500 last year.
Explaining the reason behind the price hike, Akpa attributed it to rising production costs and a lack of government support for the sector.
He lamented that nearly 50 percent of small-scale poultry farmers have closed their farms due to high operating costs.
According to him, the closure of these farms has also contributed to the sharp increase in egg prices across Nigeria.
As a solution, Akpa suggested that the government establish a special intervention fund through which farmers can access single-digit interest loans, capped at 5 percent.
He stated that such intervention could potentially bring egg prices down to between N3,000 and N4,000 per crate.
"When the government considers interventions, they should consult stakeholders like us," Akpa said.
"The government should create a poultry intervention fund with an interest rate of no more than 5 percent for farmers, along with production targets to reduce costs."
He added that if the intervention does not bring prices down, the government should sanction non-compliant farmers.
"We need a control mechanism so that government interventions are effectively monitored," he emphasized.
Akpa also highlighted the high costs of electricity, forcing farmers to rely on expensive diesel generators, and the rising costs of maize, soya, and imported micro-ingredients due to exchange rate jumps-from N600 to over N1,650 per dollar-as additional factors increasing production costs.
Sharing a bleak outlook, he said, "We are saddened that almost 50 percent of small-scale poultry farmers have shut down, causing a gap between supply and demand and driving egg prices higher. We have yet to see any substantial intervention from the government."
We reported that, alongside eggs, food prices have sharply increased in recent months, with food inflation reaching 37.77 percent in September, worsening the cost of living for Nigerians.
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