NAMAKKAL: A day after poultry farming association demanded the National Egg Coordination Committee (NECC) to fix the prices of egg, the poultry farmers association in the district decided to sell eggs directly to customers instead of traders. On Saturday, the Tamil Nadu Poultry Farmers Federation (TNPFF) said that the farmers are selling eggs to traders to at a lower price than its production cost.
Namakkal, known for the production of eggs, produces more than 5 crore eggs in a day from over hundreds of poultry farms. Despite the NECC fixing the price of eggs at Rs 3.13 per egg, the misunderstanding between merchants and poultry farmers in egg market at Namakkal zone has forced the traders to sell the eggs at a price lower than the production cost leading to the loss.
Speaking to TNIE, TNPFF president Vangli Subramani said, "The production cost of eggs is Rs 4, and after negotiating with farmers, the association sold eggs for around Rs 2.50 and Rs 2.60." He claimed that due to this, the farmers are incurring a loss of Rs 200 per day. Hence the farmers have decided to sell the eggs in the market directly from Saturday.
He also alleged that the involvement of middlemen in the industry is affecting the farmers business adversely. He said, "Several middlemen play a major role in the industry. They earn 50 per cent profit, whereas the farmers incur 50 per cent loss as they have sold eggs at a lower price than the production cost."
Currently, the farmers are selling eggs at three places, which include Uzavar Santhai, Park Road, and Tiruchy Road.
He also urged the district administration to intervene in the issue, otherwise, the industry would face severe crises.