The recent hike in the prices of eggs and other poultry products in Kano State has generated a serious public concern, especially when the Muslim fasting period is fast approaching. Eggs are usually in high demand during the fasting period.
It was gathered that one egg new sells at N130 while a crate is N3,100. It was also revealed that despite the increase, eggs are gradually becoming scarce in the state metropolis, and that has raised a serious concern from the public as other poultry products are getting out of the reach of the common citizen.
According to a resident, Abubakar Abdulsamad, egg scarcity is a perennial issue that usually occurs in periods like this when Ramadan fasting is setting in. He explained that the hike in price and scarcity of poultry products is connected to heavy hoarding by merchants. He added that the little eggs being produced by the few poultry farmers in the state are now hoarded by some merchants bent on making huge profits during the Ramadan.
“That has been the norm in periods like this, but what made this one different is that there are few poultry farms operating now due to the current economic situation across the globe, and Ramadan fasting is fast approaching. My fears are that poultry products would soon be out of circulation or too expensive to be afforded,” he said.
A poultry farmer in the state, Alhaji Isa Abba, said he could no longer afford to continue with the poultry business because the cost of production had gradually become unbearable. According to him many farmers have abandoned their farms due to several factors that have made the business very difficult.
However, the Kano State chairman of the Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN), Dr Usman Gwarzo, attributed the scarcity and hike to several factors that range from poultry feeds raw materials, chicks, vaccines, transportation, among others.
