Corn prices are stable
It is now about 35 days since Avian Influenza struck Indian poultry sector. The average corn prices in the markets have not softened as yet. Some indicative prices at the end of the week, Red $127 per MT down from $ 131 per MT last week, Local $137 per MT, up from $ 113 per MT of last week, Yellow $136 per MT, up from $126 of last week. In the state markets the only major drop was seen in Maharashtra were the prices dropped to $118 per MT from last weeks $123 per MT. In Bihar, where the new crop has started to arrive, the prices moved up a bit at $143 per MT against $133 per MT of last week.
The average price of corn in the market yards across the country was $129.00per MT and did not change from last week. Last year the price at this time was $126.75 per MT.
Reports also indicate that the as the wheat prices are higher in the state and wheat is retailing at Rs.12.00 per kg ($0.27 per kg) and Corn is retailing @ Rs.7.00 ($0.16 per kg), the lower class is shifting to corn as food, thus not allowing the prices to come down.
Bajra – Pearl Millet prices notched up at $147 per MT at the market yard, up from $141 per Mt last week. Grain Sorghum (Jowar) was selling at $177 per MT, against last weeks $170 per MT. Last year same time the price of Sorghum was $145 per Mt at the market yard.
CBOT closed at $86.04 per MT for May 2006 delivery, down by almost $1.16 per MT for May delivery. The FOB value though remained same at about $104 per MT. These are indicative prices only.
Avian Influenza - Awareness needed
This week, Pakistan was the latest victim of H5N1. In India, though no new cases have been reported, the consumption is still affected. Prices to the farmers are still ruling much below cost of production and the industry is loosing heavily as the days pass by. There will be many small farmers who will not be able to sustain these losses and might need to look for jobs outside the poultry business.
Though the Finance Minister has urged the banks to reschedule the loans, give a moratorium on interest for one year and treat working capital as long term loan, it is yet to seen if the same is implemented.
The major issue today is to get the chicken and eggs back on the plate. The consumers must be made aware that eating cooked chicken and eggs is absolutely safe. The house-wife, mother must be convinced that it is safe to feed chicken and eggs to the family.
The media, especially the electronic media can play a major role in this awareness campaign as it has the reach to the masses. A district / state authorities can also help in creating awareness. If an awareness campaign on “HAND WASHING” can be started, why not on eating chicken and eggs, which provide protein to the nation and is some cases the very backbone of the economy of the area, providing job security to many people in rural India.
Amit Sachdev
Representative
U S Grains Council, India
bluecross303@gmail.com
March 25, 2006
Saturday, March 25, 2006
Saturday, March 18, 2006
The Long and the Short of Bird Flu; Commodity prices are stable
The Long and the Short of Bird Flu
As the second case of bird flu was found in Jalagaon, a small hamlet in Maharashtra, plummeting the prices and the consumption of chicken in India, yet again. The prices which were showing signs of revival and had reached Rs.28 per kg live in Delhi market, crashed to Rs.15 per kg live. The consumption which had reached 60-65% level in some markets, crashed again.
This time though the bird flu has been found in native birds, which have never been part of the monitoring system and vaccination for any kind of disease. It has always been said that the native birds are hardy and can withstand the disease pressure. This time though it was proved wrong. Any live stock can succumb to the disease pressure.
Though Government of India has already ordered the culling of 75,000 birds in the area and the area will not be depopulated and decontaminated, it must be seen that no new outbreaks occur and lessons must be learnt from countries from Thailand, which have won the war against the deadly disease.
The first episode of bird flu was reported in Thailand in 2004 and since then 22 people has been reported dead due to the disease. This year though, there have no cases of bird flu in Thailand – human or animal and this has been possible by the commitment the Thai government made to WHO and other international agencies. 750,000 strong army of volunteers were given the charge of monitoring and surveillance of villages and reporting any bird deaths and human illnesses. This was part of the strategy to nip the disease in its early stages and it has worked.
In other countries massive disinfection programs have been started and potent disinfectants are been used in areas where there is high poultry concentrations. In some other countries, vaccination of all poultry birds is being started. But the question is what needs to be done in India?
On the short term, there are two things that will need to be done and both are complementary to each other:
1. Awareness about the spread of the bird flu and how to stem the spread by using bio-security measures. Monitoring of the birds including native birds and bringing them under the safety net will be a critical step in the equation.
2. A massive PR exercise (on the lines of AIDS awareness), wherein the consumers need to made aware that the disease does not spread by eating properly cooked poultry products.
If India can do the exercise to eradicate Malaria and working towards eradication of Polio, we can very much eradicate bird flu as well if efforts are made collectively by all the stake holders, be it organized poultry or backyard poultry.
On the long term, a plan must be started to create processing and cold chain infrastructure through a public private partnership, wherein companies can be asked to join hands with state governments to create the infrastructure. The
Venture Capital fund and the Rs.1000 crores ($225 million) special food processing fund can be utilized for the purpose. Creating a food safety net, to win the confidence of the consumer will need to be a priority.
The World Health Organization (WHO) on its website has given answers fo some frequently asked questions. The questions and answers may be found at:
http://www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/avian_faqs/en/index.html#poultry
It will be necessary to answer the questions being asked by the consumers correctly without creating any confusion, so as the consumers can be confident about consuming the poultry products.
Commodity prices are stable
Even as bird flu episode enters the 4th week, the prices of commodity, specially corn is stable. Though few markets, like Bihar and Uttar Pradesh experienced decline in prices, other markets like Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh showed an upward trend. The overall prices declined from last weeks $131.2 per MT to $129.2 per MT this week, a loss of $2 on per MT at the market yard. But the arrivals in the market are not higher and most end users and traders feel that this is a temporary phenomenon and supplies in the North and west will be much tighter as we move into summer.
The arrivals in Bihar are very small and the prices in Tamil Nadu are also stable indicating that the prices are likely to remain stable even as the new crop starts to come in.
Pearl millet prices are also higher than maize. Current prices are averaging $141 per MT, about 9% higher than the maize prices. Sorghum prices on the other hand are averaging about $170 per MT, about 32% higher than. Compared to last year the sorghum prices are higher by approximately 23%.
The prices in US on the other hand dropped substantially over lost week. Corn at CBOT for May was down by almost 7.48% to $87.20 per MT. The FOB value (US Gulf) also was down for April delivery to $103.75, while for May the FOB value was indicated at $104.55 per MT, which is almost $4 down from last week.
Amit Sachdev
Representative
U S Grains Council, India
bluecross303@gmail.com
Mar 18, 2006
As the second case of bird flu was found in Jalagaon, a small hamlet in Maharashtra, plummeting the prices and the consumption of chicken in India, yet again. The prices which were showing signs of revival and had reached Rs.28 per kg live in Delhi market, crashed to Rs.15 per kg live. The consumption which had reached 60-65% level in some markets, crashed again.
This time though the bird flu has been found in native birds, which have never been part of the monitoring system and vaccination for any kind of disease. It has always been said that the native birds are hardy and can withstand the disease pressure. This time though it was proved wrong. Any live stock can succumb to the disease pressure.
Though Government of India has already ordered the culling of 75,000 birds in the area and the area will not be depopulated and decontaminated, it must be seen that no new outbreaks occur and lessons must be learnt from countries from Thailand, which have won the war against the deadly disease.
The first episode of bird flu was reported in Thailand in 2004 and since then 22 people has been reported dead due to the disease. This year though, there have no cases of bird flu in Thailand – human or animal and this has been possible by the commitment the Thai government made to WHO and other international agencies. 750,000 strong army of volunteers were given the charge of monitoring and surveillance of villages and reporting any bird deaths and human illnesses. This was part of the strategy to nip the disease in its early stages and it has worked.
In other countries massive disinfection programs have been started and potent disinfectants are been used in areas where there is high poultry concentrations. In some other countries, vaccination of all poultry birds is being started. But the question is what needs to be done in India?
On the short term, there are two things that will need to be done and both are complementary to each other:
1. Awareness about the spread of the bird flu and how to stem the spread by using bio-security measures. Monitoring of the birds including native birds and bringing them under the safety net will be a critical step in the equation.
2. A massive PR exercise (on the lines of AIDS awareness), wherein the consumers need to made aware that the disease does not spread by eating properly cooked poultry products.
If India can do the exercise to eradicate Malaria and working towards eradication of Polio, we can very much eradicate bird flu as well if efforts are made collectively by all the stake holders, be it organized poultry or backyard poultry.
On the long term, a plan must be started to create processing and cold chain infrastructure through a public private partnership, wherein companies can be asked to join hands with state governments to create the infrastructure. The
Venture Capital fund and the Rs.1000 crores ($225 million) special food processing fund can be utilized for the purpose. Creating a food safety net, to win the confidence of the consumer will need to be a priority.
The World Health Organization (WHO) on its website has given answers fo some frequently asked questions. The questions and answers may be found at:
http://www.who.int/csr/disease/avian_influenza/avian_faqs/en/index.html#poultry
It will be necessary to answer the questions being asked by the consumers correctly without creating any confusion, so as the consumers can be confident about consuming the poultry products.
Commodity prices are stable
Even as bird flu episode enters the 4th week, the prices of commodity, specially corn is stable. Though few markets, like Bihar and Uttar Pradesh experienced decline in prices, other markets like Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh showed an upward trend. The overall prices declined from last weeks $131.2 per MT to $129.2 per MT this week, a loss of $2 on per MT at the market yard. But the arrivals in the market are not higher and most end users and traders feel that this is a temporary phenomenon and supplies in the North and west will be much tighter as we move into summer.
The arrivals in Bihar are very small and the prices in Tamil Nadu are also stable indicating that the prices are likely to remain stable even as the new crop starts to come in.
Pearl millet prices are also higher than maize. Current prices are averaging $141 per MT, about 9% higher than the maize prices. Sorghum prices on the other hand are averaging about $170 per MT, about 32% higher than. Compared to last year the sorghum prices are higher by approximately 23%.
The prices in US on the other hand dropped substantially over lost week. Corn at CBOT for May was down by almost 7.48% to $87.20 per MT. The FOB value (US Gulf) also was down for April delivery to $103.75, while for May the FOB value was indicated at $104.55 per MT, which is almost $4 down from last week.
Amit Sachdev
Representative
U S Grains Council, India
bluecross303@gmail.com
Mar 18, 2006
Monday, March 13, 2006
Maize Prices are stable; Chicken consumption and bird flu; Biotechnology and its advantages
Maize Prices are stable
As the bird flu panic subsides, prices of the major coarse cereal, maize remained stable across the country, though there was some drop in prices reported from Karnataka from Rs.5162 ($116) per MT to Rs.4850 ($109) per MT. Most traders consider this as a temporary phenomenon. As the demand of poultry products including eggs goes up, the demand for maize show an upward trend. The average price in India at the market yard is slightly up from Rs.5807 ($130.5) per MT last week to Rs.5838 ($131.2) per MT this week.
In the wake of the current freak rains hitting parts of North and Central India, rabi crop specially wheat has been reportedly damaged in parts of Punjab, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh. The damage is likely to be extensive, further reduceing the production. Optimistic estimates are 68-72 MMT of wheat production from the industry sources.
The corn prices in US at CBOT were down slightly from last week and closed at $88.97 per MT. The Fob values for March delivery were $109.25 per MT and slightly up to $109.65 per MT for April delivery.
Chicken consumption and bird flu
Bird flu has passed over, but the consumption is still low, but recovering fast. Government is doing a wonderful job in trying to create awareness through advertisements in print media. Associations like National Egg Co-ordination Committee (NECC) have roped in the film stars to convey the message about chicken safety. A regular advertisement campaign by NECC in the print media is being used to convey the message that poultry products (chicken and eggs) are safe to consume if properly cooked. Other associations are working closely with the government and providing necessary information.
Chicken is back on the menu on the airlines and passengers are consuming. Also the railways have put it back on its menu. But there is still a little hesitancy amongst the general consumers to purchase the products from the market, specially the live market.
The question though is what the consumer needs to know or what needs to happen in short and long term before the consumption is back on track and remains normal.
In the short term the companies need to win back the trust of the consumer and in the long term that trust needs to be maintained. For that to happen, the government will need to create a food safety net, wherein ‘a ‘Seal of Quality’ will need to be the part and parcel of the marketing of the food products like chicken or eggs. It will also be in the interest of the companies to create brands. Along with the seal of quality, the brand will be able to win the trust of the consumers. What is being seen is that the branded products are coming back much faster than the non branded products.
Another factor that will possibly help the industry is the guidelines from institutional buyers, which will help in establishing standards within the industry. Certified plants will need to meet and follow the standards if they wish to supply to the institutions and food service markets. The requirements could be a series of "best practices" from farm management, antibiotic free status, transport and slaughtering at a processing facility or a shop, which could be evolved over the years to become standards for the sector. This will lead to a general shift upwards to a higher standard and raise the profile of food safety.
It is also reported that the public's understanding of food risk issues, their assessment of food risks, their ability to deal with scientific information and their food safety practices is rather limited. Many are of the view that the public under-assesses the risk associated with some major microbiological hazards and over-assesses the risk associated with other hazards such as genetically modified organisms (GMOs), bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) and avian influenza (AI). Proper awareness and consumer education is must and the companies must remain in the state of preparedness in the wake of any problems.
Biotechnology and its advantages
Though there have been many questions that have been raised regarding the efficacy of the GM products, and most of the questions have been answered and the advantages proved beyond doubt. The technology is being adopted world wide and even in India the area under Bt Cotton is expected to double in next one year. One question that has been asked is the use of water and if there is excess water usage for GM crops.
There has been several papers on this which prove that the water use is actually less in case the technology is adopted.
New herbicide resistant crops help to reduce soil erosion, maintain farm sustainability and reduce pollution of streams, rivers and wetlands. GM herbicide resistant crops are compatible with and encourage no-till agriculture.
Reduced pesticide usage is another benefit of genetically modified crops that are pest resistant. Currently, genetically modified pest resistant crops include Bt cotton, Bt corn, Bt sweet corn, Bt potatoes, and virus resistant squash. These crops are able to resist certain pests and need fewer pesticide sprays – thus less water usage. In the past, pesticide usage on cotton, sweet corn and potatoes has been very high with some of these crops requiring more than a dozen insecticide sprays per season. However, some Bt hybrids need less than 15% of the insecticide sprays than does traditional varieties.
If managed properly, the GM technology can promote better weed control, reduce tillage, save moisture or irrigation water, reduce soil erosion and reduce water needed for application of pesticides and herbicides.
As we look into the future, the world's population will reach 10 billion by 2030. According to World Bank, "Biotechnology will play a crucial part of expanding agricultural productivity in the next couple of years. If managed and adopted as per the standards set, the technology could be a tremendous help in meeting the challenge of feeding an additional four billion human beings, 95% of them in the poor developing countries, on the same amount of land and water currently available."
Amit Sachdev
Representative
U S Grains Council, India
bluecross303@gmail.com
Mar 11, 2006
As the bird flu panic subsides, prices of the major coarse cereal, maize remained stable across the country, though there was some drop in prices reported from Karnataka from Rs.5162 ($116) per MT to Rs.4850 ($109) per MT. Most traders consider this as a temporary phenomenon. As the demand of poultry products including eggs goes up, the demand for maize show an upward trend. The average price in India at the market yard is slightly up from Rs.5807 ($130.5) per MT last week to Rs.5838 ($131.2) per MT this week.
In the wake of the current freak rains hitting parts of North and Central India, rabi crop specially wheat has been reportedly damaged in parts of Punjab, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh. The damage is likely to be extensive, further reduceing the production. Optimistic estimates are 68-72 MMT of wheat production from the industry sources.
The corn prices in US at CBOT were down slightly from last week and closed at $88.97 per MT. The Fob values for March delivery were $109.25 per MT and slightly up to $109.65 per MT for April delivery.
Chicken consumption and bird flu
Bird flu has passed over, but the consumption is still low, but recovering fast. Government is doing a wonderful job in trying to create awareness through advertisements in print media. Associations like National Egg Co-ordination Committee (NECC) have roped in the film stars to convey the message about chicken safety. A regular advertisement campaign by NECC in the print media is being used to convey the message that poultry products (chicken and eggs) are safe to consume if properly cooked. Other associations are working closely with the government and providing necessary information.
Chicken is back on the menu on the airlines and passengers are consuming. Also the railways have put it back on its menu. But there is still a little hesitancy amongst the general consumers to purchase the products from the market, specially the live market.
The question though is what the consumer needs to know or what needs to happen in short and long term before the consumption is back on track and remains normal.
In the short term the companies need to win back the trust of the consumer and in the long term that trust needs to be maintained. For that to happen, the government will need to create a food safety net, wherein ‘a ‘Seal of Quality’ will need to be the part and parcel of the marketing of the food products like chicken or eggs. It will also be in the interest of the companies to create brands. Along with the seal of quality, the brand will be able to win the trust of the consumers. What is being seen is that the branded products are coming back much faster than the non branded products.
Another factor that will possibly help the industry is the guidelines from institutional buyers, which will help in establishing standards within the industry. Certified plants will need to meet and follow the standards if they wish to supply to the institutions and food service markets. The requirements could be a series of "best practices" from farm management, antibiotic free status, transport and slaughtering at a processing facility or a shop, which could be evolved over the years to become standards for the sector. This will lead to a general shift upwards to a higher standard and raise the profile of food safety.
It is also reported that the public's understanding of food risk issues, their assessment of food risks, their ability to deal with scientific information and their food safety practices is rather limited. Many are of the view that the public under-assesses the risk associated with some major microbiological hazards and over-assesses the risk associated with other hazards such as genetically modified organisms (GMOs), bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) and avian influenza (AI). Proper awareness and consumer education is must and the companies must remain in the state of preparedness in the wake of any problems.
Biotechnology and its advantages
Though there have been many questions that have been raised regarding the efficacy of the GM products, and most of the questions have been answered and the advantages proved beyond doubt. The technology is being adopted world wide and even in India the area under Bt Cotton is expected to double in next one year. One question that has been asked is the use of water and if there is excess water usage for GM crops.
There has been several papers on this which prove that the water use is actually less in case the technology is adopted.
New herbicide resistant crops help to reduce soil erosion, maintain farm sustainability and reduce pollution of streams, rivers and wetlands. GM herbicide resistant crops are compatible with and encourage no-till agriculture.
Reduced pesticide usage is another benefit of genetically modified crops that are pest resistant. Currently, genetically modified pest resistant crops include Bt cotton, Bt corn, Bt sweet corn, Bt potatoes, and virus resistant squash. These crops are able to resist certain pests and need fewer pesticide sprays – thus less water usage. In the past, pesticide usage on cotton, sweet corn and potatoes has been very high with some of these crops requiring more than a dozen insecticide sprays per season. However, some Bt hybrids need less than 15% of the insecticide sprays than does traditional varieties.
If managed properly, the GM technology can promote better weed control, reduce tillage, save moisture or irrigation water, reduce soil erosion and reduce water needed for application of pesticides and herbicides.
As we look into the future, the world's population will reach 10 billion by 2030. According to World Bank, "Biotechnology will play a crucial part of expanding agricultural productivity in the next couple of years. If managed and adopted as per the standards set, the technology could be a tremendous help in meeting the challenge of feeding an additional four billion human beings, 95% of them in the poor developing countries, on the same amount of land and water currently available."
Amit Sachdev
Representative
U S Grains Council, India
bluecross303@gmail.com
Mar 11, 2006
Saturday, March 04, 2006
Maize Price; Budget and India's Poultry Industry; Avian Influenza update
Maize Price
Though the bird flu has ruffled most of the industry causing heavy losses to the farmers, the prices of maize have not been affected much. In mid week the prices in Bihar market yards were Rs.6360 ($143) per MT and had reached Rs.6450 ($145) per MT by the end of the week. The major drop in maize prices was seen in Maharashtra only, with a drop from Rs.5380 ($121) to Rs.5120 ($115) per MT at the market yard.
The average price for the week for India was Rs.5930 ($133.3) per MT at the market yard. The average price at the same time last year (March 2005) was Rs.5550 ($124.7) per MT and increase of 6.84% over last year. Bajra (Pearl Millet) prices averaged at Rs.Rs.6500 ($146) per MT, higher by 9.6% than Maize. Jowar (Grain Sorghum) prices averaged Rs.8054 ($181) per MT, about 35% higher than corn and about 21% higher than last year, clearly signaling a very short crop of these two coarse cereals.
Even as the prices of maize are above, it signals only one thing that the supply of maize is very limited. Reports also indicate the quality of maize available is below standard with smaller damaged grains available in the market.
CBOT on Friday closed at $89.97 per MT for Mar delivery. For May delivery the indicative price at CBOT was $94.22 per MT.
Maize prices in China are also on the rise due to strong demand from the starch, syrup and ethanol industries, more than offsetting a slowdown in animal feed consumption caused by bird flu. Industry officials and analysts say that while industrial corn use accounts for a very small percentage of the overall consumption, it is growing @ 10-15% per year, fuelled by two major things that are happening in the world; increasing crude oil and sugar prices. Reports indicate that China will not be in the market for maize exports in 2006/07
Budget and India's Poultry Industry
The Finance Minister, in his budget for the year 2006/07, has identified some priority areas, one of them being Food Processing. Rs.1000 crores ($225 million) corpus fund has been created for agro-processing infrastructure and market development. Though food processing is a very vast subject, it is very likely that poultry industry will get a share in this corpus fund.
The finance minister has been kind enough to eliminate the excise duty on processed poultry meat, meat products and fish. In 2005/06 the excise duty was reduced from 16% to 8% and in the new budget, it has been reduced from 8% to nil, which will certainly be an advantage to the sector and boost the value added sector. It will be possible for consumers to chose from large variety of value added processed products at affordable prices. It is hoped that the new excise regime will bring in more investments in the sector.
Avian Influenza update
In the past week Avian Influenza was confirmed in Niger and Serbia as well. In India, the government’s swift action curtailed the problem in the specified area, but the panic caused has reduced the consumption of poultry and poultry products in the country, causing huge losses to the poultry sector. Creating awareness among the population though public lectures and advertisements is the only way to bring back the consumption.
A public lecture was held this week at the Science Museum, New Delhi where Dr.Shahid Jameel provided the basic facts about Bird Flu and its spread. In his remarks he pointed out very clearly that Avian Flu is not caused by consumption of properly cooked poultry products. The lecture was attended by about 800 people, including school children. It was an education series seminar aimed at providing information to the children, so as they can take the message to their parents.
Another public lecture is being held at India International Centre on March 09, 2006 at 0630 PM by Toxic Links and NGO.
The idea is to dispel any fears among the consumers about the spread of the virus though consumption. As per WHO website, “…good hygiene practices during handling of raw poultry meat and usual recommended cooking practices for poultry products would lower any potential risk to insignificant levels.”
The new OIE Code chapter for AI recognizes, “Poultry meat and table eggs are not a vehicles for transmission of AI”
There is no evidence suggesting that humans have acquired avian influenza by eating poultry products.
As per WHO, since December 2003, the virus is known to have infected 173 people, of whom 93 have died. But not one of these cases has been linked to the consumption of properly cooked poultry or poultry products. The main health risk currently is to people who are in close contact with infected poultry, such as families with backyard flocks and poultry workers in wet markets or live animal markets.
Amit Sachdev
Representative
U S Grains Council, India
bluecross303@gmail.com
Mar 04, 2006
Though the bird flu has ruffled most of the industry causing heavy losses to the farmers, the prices of maize have not been affected much. In mid week the prices in Bihar market yards were Rs.6360 ($143) per MT and had reached Rs.6450 ($145) per MT by the end of the week. The major drop in maize prices was seen in Maharashtra only, with a drop from Rs.5380 ($121) to Rs.5120 ($115) per MT at the market yard.
The average price for the week for India was Rs.5930 ($133.3) per MT at the market yard. The average price at the same time last year (March 2005) was Rs.5550 ($124.7) per MT and increase of 6.84% over last year. Bajra (Pearl Millet) prices averaged at Rs.Rs.6500 ($146) per MT, higher by 9.6% than Maize. Jowar (Grain Sorghum) prices averaged Rs.8054 ($181) per MT, about 35% higher than corn and about 21% higher than last year, clearly signaling a very short crop of these two coarse cereals.
Even as the prices of maize are above, it signals only one thing that the supply of maize is very limited. Reports also indicate the quality of maize available is below standard with smaller damaged grains available in the market.
CBOT on Friday closed at $89.97 per MT for Mar delivery. For May delivery the indicative price at CBOT was $94.22 per MT.
Maize prices in China are also on the rise due to strong demand from the starch, syrup and ethanol industries, more than offsetting a slowdown in animal feed consumption caused by bird flu. Industry officials and analysts say that while industrial corn use accounts for a very small percentage of the overall consumption, it is growing @ 10-15% per year, fuelled by two major things that are happening in the world; increasing crude oil and sugar prices. Reports indicate that China will not be in the market for maize exports in 2006/07
Budget and India's Poultry Industry
The Finance Minister, in his budget for the year 2006/07, has identified some priority areas, one of them being Food Processing. Rs.1000 crores ($225 million) corpus fund has been created for agro-processing infrastructure and market development. Though food processing is a very vast subject, it is very likely that poultry industry will get a share in this corpus fund.
The finance minister has been kind enough to eliminate the excise duty on processed poultry meat, meat products and fish. In 2005/06 the excise duty was reduced from 16% to 8% and in the new budget, it has been reduced from 8% to nil, which will certainly be an advantage to the sector and boost the value added sector. It will be possible for consumers to chose from large variety of value added processed products at affordable prices. It is hoped that the new excise regime will bring in more investments in the sector.
Avian Influenza update
In the past week Avian Influenza was confirmed in Niger and Serbia as well. In India, the government’s swift action curtailed the problem in the specified area, but the panic caused has reduced the consumption of poultry and poultry products in the country, causing huge losses to the poultry sector. Creating awareness among the population though public lectures and advertisements is the only way to bring back the consumption.
A public lecture was held this week at the Science Museum, New Delhi where Dr.Shahid Jameel provided the basic facts about Bird Flu and its spread. In his remarks he pointed out very clearly that Avian Flu is not caused by consumption of properly cooked poultry products. The lecture was attended by about 800 people, including school children. It was an education series seminar aimed at providing information to the children, so as they can take the message to their parents.
Another public lecture is being held at India International Centre on March 09, 2006 at 0630 PM by Toxic Links and NGO.
The idea is to dispel any fears among the consumers about the spread of the virus though consumption. As per WHO website, “…good hygiene practices during handling of raw poultry meat and usual recommended cooking practices for poultry products would lower any potential risk to insignificant levels.”
The new OIE Code chapter for AI recognizes, “Poultry meat and table eggs are not a vehicles for transmission of AI”
There is no evidence suggesting that humans have acquired avian influenza by eating poultry products.
As per WHO, since December 2003, the virus is known to have infected 173 people, of whom 93 have died. But not one of these cases has been linked to the consumption of properly cooked poultry or poultry products. The main health risk currently is to people who are in close contact with infected poultry, such as families with backyard flocks and poultry workers in wet markets or live animal markets.
Amit Sachdev
Representative
U S Grains Council, India
bluecross303@gmail.com
Mar 04, 2006
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