Wholesale prices for chicken fell to a minimum since the beginning of the year

Wholesale prices for a broiler carcass this week decreased by 1% to 132 rubles. per kg, which is the lowest value since the beginning of 2022, according to the price monitoring of the analytical agency AD Libitum, created with the participation of the National Union of Poultry Breeders (NSP), the National Union of Pig Breeders (NSS) and the Institute for Agricultural Market Studies (IKAR). The last time the cost of a chicken was at this level was at the end of February this year.

The main reason for the decrease in the cost of the product is “the absence of a shortage of meat with moderate demand,” the authors of the monitoring write. As follows from the report itself, wholesale prices for broiler carcasses have been continuously declining since mid-October. The authors predict that this trend will continue before the onset of 2023. The representative of AD Libitum did not comment on the monitoring data, the NSS declined to comment. The IKAR representative confirmed the monitoring data, also linking it to low demand.

According to the results of 11 months, poultry production increased by 5.4% to 5.9 million tons, which also puts pressure on prices, especially considering that pork production is also increasing, says a representative of a large meat producer. The output of pork in agricultural enterprises during this period really increased by 7.4% to 4.7 million tons in live weight, according to the NSS data. As a result, as Yury Kovalev, the general director of this organization, specified, the average annual wholesale prices for such meat decreased by 5-7%, depending on its type. This made it possible not to raise the cost of pork on store shelves compared to last year.

At the same time, the fall in average annual prices could be even more – up to 15%, Kovalev believes. But the profitability of pig farmers was supported by a 7% increase in consumption, which is comparable to production. This was facilitated by social payments from the state. In addition, this year, for the first time in 15 years, the price difference between pork and broiler meat has decreased from the traditional 50% to 25-30%, so the former has become available to the category of citizens who previously bought chicken. According to monitoring data from AD Libitum, this week, live pigs were sold at 107 rubles. per kg, which is 13% lower than last year in the same period.