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Cattle breeders fear losses due to poor sales amid Covid-19
Throughout the past year, cattle breeders and farmers have struggled with high feed costs and as Eid-ul-Azha draws near, they worry if the money they spent can even be recovered.
Commercial cattle farms and local farmers have hinted that the prices of the animals are set to be slightly higher than last year owing to the rise in costs of cattle feed, especially seed-based grains, throughout the past one year.
For instance, the cost of wheat bran — the most common ingredient in cattle feed — is Tk30.85 per kg compared to Tk24.5 a year ago.
Prices of other ingredients, such as rice polish, have also increased by a staggering 41%, from Tk17 in the previous year to Tk24 now.
Rearing cattle for beef fattening in and around Dhaka is more expensive compared to rural areas. A mid-sized cow or bull that weighs around 200 kilograms consumes around Tk 5,000 to Tk 6,500 worth of cattle feed a month. Meaning a farmer has to incur around Tk 60,000 to Tk 78,000 a year. Most farmers sell these cattle on a quarterly basis throughout the year.
The hike is common for several ingredients, including maize, pea bran, soya meal, and red lentil bran. Cost of hay, which is commonly used as fodder, has also gone up a few notches. These prices went up in September last year and have not gone down since.
Wholesale cattle feed shops around Dhaka’s Atibazar and Fulbaria have blamed the lockdown for the rise in prices due to poor availability of transport, although there are no restrictions from the government on transporting cattle feed.
Many commercial farm owners believe a syndicate is to blame for this price hike.
Usually, cattle prices in commercial farms are set according to the animal’s live weight, and this year the price is being set at about Tk400 per kg. The amount is higher for “special” breeds which weigh above 500 kilograms.
Going around these commercial farms, the Dhaka Tribune found that many cows and goats are already booked, as these farms offer delivery the day before Eid. Consumers do not have to go through the trouble of keeping the sacrificial animals and many prefer to not wait for the last few days to buy their animal of choice.
This trend has been growing for the last few years as commercial beef fattening farms have mushroomed up in different places in and around the cities offering services like these.
“I already paid half the amount for my cow back in June. Now I do not have to worry about the animal’s maintenance,” said Omar, a middle-aged service holder in a private company.
However, unlike Omar, most consumers are going to purchase from the cattle haats, but due to the lockdown, the supply might be lower than in other years.
On July 13, cattle-laden trucks were seen waiting to unload in front of the cattle markets.
According to haat leaseholders, they are almost done with their preparations in order to facilitate the sacrificial animals. They are hopeful that the arrival of cattle will gain momentum in the next few days.
Visitors were also seen around these markets, mainly to assess the situation and prices of the cows.
The local farmers who bring cows from various districts to the capital during Eid fear that a lack of customers due to the pandemic might hamper their business as they might not get the right value for their animals.
According to the Department of Livestock, it is unlikely that there will be any shortage of sacrificial animals, as there is an adequate supply of locally-reared cattle to meet the demand this Eid.
Officials have also mentioned there are 12 million sacrificial animals — around 4.5 million cows and buffaloes and 7.4 million sheep are available this time.
Earlier this week, the government officials of both the city corporations confirmed the approval of 21 markets around the capital.
According to the officials, 10 markets in Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) and 11 others in Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) are going to be allowed to operate, maintaining “strict” Covid-19 healthy safety rules.
But anybody who has visited cattle markets in the past will have an idea of how difficult it is going to be to maintain such rules, as these markets are usually overcrowded especially in the last few days before Eid.
These cattle markets will be open from July 17 till July 21, the day of Eid-ul Azha.
According to the statistics of the number of Covid-19 cases, Dhaka is currently in a better situation compared to other parts of the country.
This is due to the lockdown of the districts around the capital.
However, the lockdown is being eased due to the transport of sacrificial animals which might cause Dhaka to suffer from another surge of cases after Eid, which might have dire consequences.
In order to keep Covid-19 infections down, DNCC has launched an online platform where people can buy their sacrificial animals and get slaughtering services.
By visiting the website www.digitalhaat.net, consumers will be able to attain such services. This was initiated by DNCC, e-Commerce Association of Bangladesh, Ministry of Commerce and Bangladesh Dairy Farmers Association.
After purchasing the animal, the transaction of money will be made through an account of the Bangladesh Bank to ensure consumer satisfaction. About 2,000 farmers will be connected to the platform. According to DNCC Mayor Atiqul Islam, their target is to sell a total of 100,000 sacrificial animals through this online platform.
(DT)
