KUALA LUMPUR – The cabinet has agreed to grant poultry farmers a subsidy of 60 sen per kg of chicken and 5 sen per egg.
In a press conference today, Agriculture and Food Industries Minister Datuk Seri Ronald Kiandee said the allocation will apply between February 5 and June 5.
“The subsidy will be carried out throughout the period of the Malaysian Family Maximum Price Scheme, introduced by the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry, and will last for the next four months.
“We will also subsidise eggs at 5 sen each for all grades.”
He added that the estimated financial cost to implement the subsidies over the course of four months will be around RM500 million.
Ronald said the subsidy aims to alleviate the burden of farmers after the hike in costs, especially for livestock feed, which covers 70% of production costs, in addition to logistics, labour, medicine and utility expenses.
He added that a plan will be presented at a task force meeting chaired by the ministry and will be handed over to the Finance Ministry (MoF).
This plan will involve two ministry agencies, with the supervision of the Veterinary Services Department and funds channelled through Agrobank.
It will also be subject to approval by MoF.
Yesterday, the cabinet announced that a subsidy would be provided to farmers, taking into account the farm-level price of live chickens at RM5.90 per kg and the retail price of standard chicken at RM8.90 per kg. – The Vibes, February 10, 2022
