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Feed prices farmers’ last straw
Rising feed prices have forced a significant number of catfish, shrimp and livestock breeders in the southern region to give up their occupations.
More than 30 per cent of catfish breeders in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta have stopped their business because of losses caused by high fish-feed prices, according to the Viet Nam Association of Seafood Exporters and Processors (VASEP).
The rise in fish-feed prices was mainly responsible for a loss of VND1,000 (US$0.06) on every kilogramme of catfish, said Le Viet Tien, a catfish breeder in Tien Giang province.
Many shrimp ponds in the region were also idle for the same reason. The shrimp breeding area in Bac Lieu province had fallen from 10,000ha last year to 2,000ha this year.
Farmers who raise pigs and chickens were also suffering losses because of the rise in animal feed prices that changed five times last month.
A poultry farmer lost up to VND3,000 ($0.2) per kilo of products because one kilogramme of chicken cost VND22,000 ($1.2) to produce, but had to be sold for just VND19,000 ($1.1), said Pham Van Minh, who-owns a farm in HCM City.
Minh said many chicken breeders would stop their business if this trend of rising feed prices and falling chicken prices in the market continued.
Le Van Doan, who breeds pigs in Tien Giang, lamented that for every 100 kilogrammes, he had to spend VND2 million ($112) on food, VND1.4 million ($79) for piglets and bear several other expenses, but his selling price for this quantity was just VND3.3 million ($185).
On the other hand, the Animal Feed Association said catfish was selling at VND16,500 (US$0.9) a kilogramme, up about VND3,000 ($0.2) over the last five months.
The rise in animal feed prices of around VND160 per kilogramme, therefore, was reasonable and would have no impact on breeders, an association official said.
However, the peak prices, according to catfish breeders, lasted for a very short time, and selling prices were currently just VND14,000 ($0.8) per kilogramme. Livestock farmers said 100kg of pig fetched VND4.2 million ($23.6) in April, but since early May, the price had fallen to VND3.7 million ($20.8).
Experts noted that while livestock breeders had expanded production over last year by 15 to 20 per cent, the area for catfish and shrimp breeding in the Mekong Delta had reduced sharply by 50 per cent.
VietNamNet, VietNamNews
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