The price of fresh red meat in the market varies between 300 and 400 pounds, depending on the cut. While the Egyptian Ministry of Supply provides fresh Sudanese meat at its outlets, at prices ranging from 200 to 225 pounds.
The Egyptian government works on more than one level to control markets and the adequacy of local demand for meat. Egypt has five thousand head of cattle in quarries in Sudan, enough for one year and seven months, according to what the Minister of Supply and Internal Trade, Dr. Ali Al-Moselhi, announced at the end of April. According to Moselhi, the government is trying to provide other sources of imports, in order to diversify the sources of livestock in the market near Eid al-Adha. Two weeks ago, Al-Moselhi announced the agreement to supply live meat from Djibouti, on the condition that a credit of around $10 million be made available in preparation for Eid al-Adha. Egypt imports meat from Somalia and Chad.
profit margin for importers
The Deputy Head of Butchers Division at the Cairo Chamber of Commerce, Haitham Abdel Basset, says in exclusive statements to “Economy Sky News Arabia” that “for live calves, the selling price to the consumer now reaches 150 pounds on kilo, and 180 pounds for a sheep”, noting that these high prices are the result of an exaggeration by importers to obtain their own profit margin.
However, over the past few days, and with the stagnant state of the markets, live meat prices have started to drop by around 20 pounds for beef and buffalo, to around 130 pounds per kilo.
Abdel Basset underlines that the owners of butcher shops are always in the crosshairs of accusations and criticism, in view of the high prices, although they are not responsible for these record price increases, and that the responsibility lies with the importers who exaggerate the profit margin.
He explains that the “butchers” are affected by this increase, so that some of them have left the system and have been forced to close their shops, while others have suffered great material losses, adding: “We call on officials to find a solution with importers that leads to lower prices, especially And that many of them were importing calves from abroad at prices below current dollar prices before Ramadan, and they are getting a very high profit margin.
double the purchasing power
He points out that there is no proper purchasing power in the market and therefore the demand for meat at these current prices is weakening, citing statistics previously published by the Public Mobilization Authority and statistics, which indicate that meat consumption per capita during the year reaches 7 kilograms.
He continues: “In view of the high prices and the decline in purchasing power, butchers (butchers) are affected, and some of them have gone bankrupt as a result.
Finally, the Egyptian Ministry of Agriculture announced the import of 170,000 new cattle, unlike the previous batches that had already been imported, amounting to 180,000 cattle, to meet the needs of citizens and control the markets. According to ministry data, the increased supply will affect the price of red or live meat, so additional quantities will be pumped in, given the presence of outlets to provide an alternative. appropriate to the Egyptian citizen.
The Butchery Division felt that importing meat from Chad and Djibouti would control markets at this stage and before the season.
Relative decline in live meat prices
For his part, the leader of the Peasants’ Syndicate in Egypt, Hussein Abu Saddam, told in exclusive statements to “Economy Sky News Arabia” that there has been a significant drop in live meat prices over the past few days. , and it is hoped that this decline will continue in the coming days, affecting the prices of red meat on the market.
This is due to a number of key factors, the most important of which are:
Importing large quantities of live, slaughtered, frozen and chilled meat from abroad as part of the Egyptian state’s efforts to control markets. Relative decline in animal feed prices. The stagnation of markets, given the lack of interest of many people in buying sacrificial animals, a consequence of low purchasing power.
And he adds: “Prices were expected to increase more broadly if they remained at the same rate as they have in the past, but the decline in live meat due to these mentioned factors is expected to contribute to turn to reduce meat prices in the markets, and there are already butchers who have started to reduce prices drastically.” limited, while others wait in anticipation of rising live meat prices over the next few weeks ahead of Eid al-Adha. “
And the head of the Farmers’ Syndicate in Egypt goes on to say, “Ahead of the holy Eid Al-Adha, the prices of sacrifices are expected to increase further, especially with the high demand from citizens buying sacrifices in the last days before the holiday until on the night of the party, provided that this increase is temporary for a period.”
It is believed that due to the government’s efforts to control the markets, it is believed that the decline will continue after this, and this against the backdrop of recent declines in the prices of various commodities.
Egypt faces several simultaneous economic challenges. Inflation averaged 30.8% on an annual basis in the first quarter of this year, compared to 18.8% in the last quarter of 2022. However, inflation declined slightly in April to reach 30.5%, supported by the stability of the exchange rate.
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