The average retail price of dressed chicken as of February 21 declined by 2.24 percent to P145.42 per kilogram (kg), from the previous week’s quotation of P148.75 per kg, according to the Bureau of Animal Industry (BAI).
BAI Assistant Director Simeon S. Amurao Jr. told the BusinessMirror that this was due to the increase in chicken supply after raisers harvested their stocks.
“The supply is increasing so the price is expected to decline. This is seen in the lower inventory of chicken in local cold storages,” Amurao said. “And the price could go down further by March if local raisers have totally resumed normal loading stocks.”
BAI data obtained by the BusinessMirror showed that the latest price quotation for fully dressed chicken is slightly lower than the P145.92 per kg recorded in the same period last year.
The latest data from the National Meat Inspection Service (NMIS) showed that, as of January 29, the country’s total dressed-chicken inventory reached 17,242.22 metric tons (MT), 12.65 percent higher than the previous week’s 15,306.23 MT.
The bulk of total inventory, or about 61.32 percent, consisted of locally produced chicken. Local poultry during the period amounted to 10,573.95 MT, 41.38 percent higher than the 7,478.93 MT recorded a week ago.
The average retail prices of various chicken parts in the market also posted declines during the period, BAI data showed.
The price of chicken wings declined by P2.58 to P155.25 per kg, while that of chicken breasts fell by P2.09 to P151.33 per kg. Also, the average retail price of chicken drumstick as of February 19 was pegged at P155.08 per kg, P2.17 lower than the previous week’s quotation of P157.25 per kg.
However, the average farm-gate price of chicken was unchanged at P95.44 per kg, according to BAI data.
The average prices of day-old-chick and medium eggs also remained at P36.40 and P5.32,
respectively.