Organic chicken sold for 51 euros in Guyana causes controversy

A deputy from Guyana relaunched this Thursday the controversy around the price of living in Overseas. Gabriel Serville tweeted the exorbitant price of an organic farm chicken, imported by plane and sold for 51 euros in a Système U store in Saint-Martin.

"Do we not have breeding chains in the Antilles, Guyana, to import by air chickens billed 51 euros while 20% of the Antilleans and 45% of the Guyanese live on less than 420 euros per month", wonders elected on Twitter. Its publication has been shared almost 5,000 times.

Expensive life Overseas: on the left an organic chicken @ULesCommercants imported by plane to Saint-Martin in July 2018. On the right the same chicken, in the same place, in January 2020. The difference? + 20%. In 18 months. It's 10 times national inflation! Can we talk about it? #pwofitasyon pic.twitter.com/VplgmK3TeW

The price of transport and taxes

"In March, I wrote to Edouard Philippe to ask for something to fight against expensive living while supermarkets are stuffing themselves with margins up to 55% on everyday consumer products in the Antilles Guyana", continues the deputy in another tweet. " No answer. "

There is interest in there being all the gold stolen from Guyana in this chicken ptain https://t.co/vydESHJWto

According to a supermarket spokesperson, this price makes sense. "There is no local production" of organic chickens, he explains. “This chicken, in mainland France, is sold for 10.75 euros per kg. […] When transported by air, the kg of goods costs 12 euros to transport. "Hence a final price of 45 euros for chicken, to which are added" taxes, marketing costs and the merchant's margin, "he continues.

A law to promote the local never applied

"There are people who come to St-Martin, who want to find imported organic products and are ready to pay that price," continues the spokesperson to explain such a practice. “Customers have gotten into this habit and are demanding these products from us. »In Saint-Martin, Système U also offers« chickens at much lower prices, transported by sea and frozen, coming from France. "

According to Gabriel Serville, a bill was passed in 2012 to oblige supermarkets to reserve a place for local productions. But it is not applied "in the absence of an implementing decree". In July 2019, the competition authority indicated that prices were 12% higher than in mainland France and even 19% (Mayotte) to 38% (Martinique) higher for food alone.

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• Guyana
• Society
• Consumption
• Poultry
• Supermarket
• Price
• Import