With such a tectonic rise, prices of both red meat and white meat have gone beyond the commoners' reach, said consumer rights groups.
Broiler sold at Tk 240-260 a kg on Friday, which rose to Tk 250-270 on Sunday and further to Tk 280-290 on Monday, marking a Tk 20-25 hike a kg within hours.
Broiler has witnessed a 90-100 per cent hike in the past two months, according to the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB).
Pakistani and Sonali chicken prices have further increased by Tk 10 a kg as retailed at Tk 390-410.
Anisur Rahman, a chicken vendor at East Rayerbazar in the city, said prices have been increasing continually for the last two months.
Suppliers are demanding Tk 26,500-27,000 per quintal birds, which was Tk 24,000 a week back and Tk 20,000 a month back, he said.
Juber Alam, a Dhonbari farm owner, said farms are forced to minimise production by 30-40 per cent amid higher costs of inputs, including day-old chicken, feed, electricity, medicine and others.
Feed price is now Tk 74-78 a kg which was Tk 30-32 a kg a year back, according to him.
The day-one chick price hit Tk 58-60 from Tk 15-20 apiece a year ago, said Mr Alam.
Electricity price has also shot up by 5.0-6.0 per cent.
"Per-kilogram output cost is now minimum Tk 220 a kg and we are selling those at Tk 225-230 a kg," he said.
Mr Alam further said that they could not sell poultry birds directly to city vendors, which is also a reason for a fresh hike in poultry meat prices.
Khandoker Mohsin Bepari, secretary of Bangladesh Poultry Rakkha Jatiya Parishad, which safeguards marginal poultry farmers, said both middlemen and big poultry businesses are liable for such an exorbitant hike. According to him, leading poultry companies fix and dominate markets of both poultry inputs and poultry products.
Mr Mohsin suggested that the government bring big suppliers under strict vigilance to maintain a check and balance in the market.
Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB) secretary Humayun Kabir Bhuiyan said both white and red meat has now gone beyond the commoners' purchasing power.
He said beef price has already shot up to Tk 750-800 a kg and mutton to Tk 900-1100, virtually making the protein items for the rich only.
Only items like broiler, farm egg, cultured fish like pangas and tilapia were considerably cheaper, but they also posted a 35-55 per cent hike in a year, he said.
Mr Bhuiyan said protein intake among poor families has declined significantly in recent years, thus indicating a poor health condition as such items are valid sources for zinc, iron and other nutrients.
Poor vigilance by the government is the key reason that the traders could dare to fix prices at their wish, he maintained.
However, the hike in broiler came just hours after commerce minister Tipu Munshi warned businesses against any type of artificial price hike ahead of Ramadan.
He sounded the warning at a task-force meeting of the ministry on Sunday noon. Traders, market observers, experts and officials concerned attended it.
According to the Bangladesh Poultry Industry Central Council, poultry production has dropped by 25 per cent in 18 months as meat output fell to 4,000 tonnes per day and egg to 40-million pieces daily.
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