The Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN) has recently disclosed that the price of eggs will continue to rise due to inflation that has affected the prices of poultry feeds, amongst other problems.
Chairman Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN) FCT chapter Pius Aminu disclosed this at an event to commemorate the 2022 World Egg Day with the theme “Egg for better Life’’, which was all about recognizing eggs as an incredibly unique source of protein and essential nutrients.
He said, “the increase in egg production is due to the high cost of feed across the country, thereby making it unaffordable to farmers, they also cited insecurity and lack of access roads to poultry farms among others, despite high demand.
“At the moment it’s very difficult for the price of eggs to come down, rather it will continue to rise because the demand is higher than supply due to a number of farms that have closed down.
“We are not sure how much we are going to buy eggs in the next month, it may go as high as N2,500 or more as the case may be. Exchange rates is really affecting micro ingredients used to formulate feed; so, for now, we do not know but definitely, I can’t guarantee that price will remain as it is now”.
He, therefore, urged the federal government to alleviate the plight of farmers by providing them with flexible loan facilities, grants, and also the provision of security to prevent farmlands from external attacks.
Nigeria’s food inflation has continued to worsen in the past few months as insecurity has forced a lot of farmers away from their farmlands where they should be cultivating and harvesting farm produce, Investors King understands.
According to NBS data, growth in Nigeria’s agricultural sector has been inconsistent and slowing since the fourth quarter of 2020, before it surprisingly rose to 3.58 percent in the fourth quarter of 2021 and slowed to 3.16 percent in the first quarter of 2022.