Malaysia suspends chicken exports amid soaring prices

A chicken seller in Kuala Lumpur, capital of Malaysia, June 27, 2019. © MOHD RASFAN/AFP

Text by: RFI Follow

1 min

Malaysia has announced the suspension of chicken exports to combat a shortage in its domestic market and soaring prices.

This decision worries in particular the Singaporean neighbor, of which more than a third of the chicken supply comes from Malaysia.

Advertising

Read more

With our correspondent in Kuala Lumpur,

Gabrielle Maréchaux

In Malaysia, chicken is serious business, and with an average of 50 kilos consumed per person per year, this multi-religious country is the 3rd in the ranking of the biggest chicken eaters after Israel and the United States.

Banning the import of chicken to preserve the local market is therefore clearly a measure that reassures the population.

On June 1, 3.6 million chickens usually reserved for export will not leave Malaysian soil "

 until prices and supply stabilize 

", declared Prime Minister Sabri Yaakob.

The price of poultry feed is soaring

But it is unclear whether this will be effective for the Malaysian consumer.

Because if prices are high at the moment, it is less because of exports and more because of the price of poultry feed, which increased dramatically

after the start of the war in Ukraine

.

However, while the Malaysian government has announced subsidies for chicken farmers, the latter have actually struggled to benefit from them.

This export ban could finally, in addition to being useless, prove harmful in the long term, for Malaysian farms, with for example a Singaporean neighbor very hungry for poultry who could now turn to countries other than Malaysia. to get supplies.

The Singaporean agency is concerned about the consequences of this suspension and has already warned against "

 temporary disruptions in the supply of chilled chicken

 ".

► Also to listen: 7 billion neighbors - Why does the whole world want to eat chicken?

Newsletter

Receive all the international news directly in your mailbox

I subscribe

Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application

google-play-badge_EN

  • Malaysia

  • Agriculture and Fishing

  • Food

  • Economy