THE Philippines is expected to produce 1 billion broilers this year, as commercial growers are projected to increase their output, an official of the United Broiler Raisers Association (Ubra) said on Tuesday.
Ubra Chairman Gregorio San Diego said the projected broiler production this year is 11 percent higher than the estimated 900 million birds produced by the local poultry industry in 2014.
“Poultry growers may continue to see lower farm-gate prices for live chicken in the coming months due to the availability of more broilers,” San Diego told the BusinessMirror in a telephone interview.
He said farm-gate price for live chicken is currently at P66 per kilogram, 17.5 percent lower than the figure posted last month.
“We’re even losing money because our production cost is at P80 per kilo. The cost of inputs, such as feeds and day-old chicks, went up before the holidays,” San Diego said.
He said the average farm-gate price is not expected to improve any time soon due to the projected hike in the production of commercial growers.
What makes matters worse for poultry growers, San Diego said, is the continuous importation of poultry meat.
“Poultry-meat imports have been increasing. So the poultry sector is facing a lot of challenges this year,” he said.
The Philippines imports chicken under the minimum-access volume of the World Trade Organization.
The Department of Agriculture (DA) usually allows the importation of more chicken if there’s a supply shortfall.
Based on data from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), the country’s poultry production rose by a minimal 0.54 percent year on year to 1.13 million metric tons in January to September of last year.
In the nine months to September, PSA figures showed that the average farm-gate price of live chicken rose by 9 percent year on year to P91.22 per kilo.
Poultry meat is a popular and affordable protein source for many Filipinos. Chicken is extensively used as an ingredient for making popular Filipino dishes, such as adobo.