Lockdown affected supply of Meat being transported within and across States
As per report the prices of meat have been rising in india as vendors and suppliers have been trying to balance the increasing demand with the erratic supply. Stringent measures against vehicular movement coupled with rumours over COVID-19 have drastically affected the supply of meat across India. However, with most of india at home and with restaurants and meat shops shut, customers have been turning to e-commerce websites for their supply of chicken. In bengaluru, currently, the wholesale rate of chicken is 90/kg whereas the retail rate stands at Rs 150/kg.
The demand for chicken has been increasing. However, we have not been able to supply because there has been a shortage of feed. The feed for chicken, like soybean and maize, needs to come from madhya pradesh and maharashtra, and that has been affected since the movement of trucks has been minimal. Whatever feed is available right now, we have been feeding that to the chickens,” said Dr G Devegowda, president, Institution of Veterinarians of Poultry industry (IVPI).
Fake news that eating chicken can increase the risk of getting infected by coronavirus and the recent bird flu outbreak have also affected the sales of chicken. Meanwhile, mutton in bengaluru is being sold at a wholesale rate of Rs 700 per kg. In rural areas, while the sales have not been affected, the sales in urban areas have been affected since movement has been restricted. “Since butcher shops are closed, a lot of people have not been able to source mutton. Before lockdown, there was proper supply. There was actually a rise in demand for mutton, there was a 13-15% hike in mutton sales two months before lockdown. In chennai, meanwhile, the price of mutton per kg is currently at Rs 1,200. A mutton vendor in chennai told TNM that they have been sourcing mutton supply from andhra pradesh, and hence transportation costs also need to be factored in.