Poultry industry in deep crisis as farmers lose Tk 13b a month

Soaring production costs, collapsing farm-gate prices and middlemen's grip force thousands of small farms to shut down

FHM Humayan Kabir | Published: December 20, 2025 23:44:34

A deepening crisis in Bangladesh's poultry industry is forcing thousands of small-scale farmers to shut down their operations due to soaring production costs, market manipulation by middlemen, and a collapse in farm-gate prices, industry insiders said on Saturday.
Farmers are losing nearly Tk 13 billion per month in egg and broiler chicken production, according to both small and big farmers.
Market intervention by middlemen, who pocket at least Tk 3.30 billion in profit each month from eggs and some Tk 40 per kg from broiler chicken, has also affected end consumers, they said.
The country's poultry industry, a backbone of rural employment and protein security, has turned hostile for the marginal producer in late 2025 as hundreds of small and medium-sized farms have closed in the last few months, said Bangladesh Poultry Industry Central Council (BPICC), a forum of the poultry industry entrepreneurs.
Farmers report that the cost of producing a single egg now stands at approximately Tk 10.50 to Tk 11, but they are often forced to sell to wholesalers for as little as Tk 7.50 to Tk 8.0, claimed the BPICC. Similarly, broiler chicken production costs have hit Tk 160-170 per kg, while farm-gate selling prices have plummeted to Tk 122-125 per kg, it said.
Aminul Haque, a farmer in Rajshahi, said: "We are losing money on every bird we raise. Feed prices are at an all-time high, but when we go to sell, the buyers offer us prices that don't even cover the cost of the chicks. So I have shut down the farm."
Despite heavy losses sustained by producers, consumers in urban centers like the capital city see little relief. While farmers lose roughly Tk 2.0-Tk 2.30 per egg, the retail price in city markets remains high, often exceeding Tk 11-12 per piece. This widening gap is attributed to a powerful network of middlemen and corporate "syndicates" who control the supply chain. These intermediaries buy eggs and poultry at rock-bottom prices from desperate farmers and sell them at inflated rates to retailers, poultry industry leaders said.
Mashiur Rahman, President of the BPICC, told The Financial Express that they have been struggling over the past few months with falling prices at the farm level compared to the production costs. If the trend continues, thousands for poultry farms will shut down within a year resulting in massive unemployment across the country, he said.
"Although the government has fixed the farm-gate, wholesale and retail prices for eggs and meat, we are forced to sell live products at heavy losses per unit. So, it is very difficult to stay in business, even with the support of the government," Mr Rahman added.
Earlier in March 2024, the Department of Agricultural Marketing fixed prices for 29 food products, including chicken meat and eggs, at the producer, wholesale and retail levels. The production cost of broiler chicken is Tk 145.78 per kg. It has to be sold for Tk 151.81 at the producer level, Tk 162.69 at wholesale level and Tk 175.30 at the retail level.
On the other hand, the production cost of eggs was fixed at Tk 10.19 per unit while the prices at the farm-gate were Tk 10.58, at wholesale level Tk 11.01 and Tk 11.87 at retail level. They said that despite a global decline in raw material costs like maize and soybean, local feed prices remain artificially high.
BPICC leaders said although farmers are losing Tk 20-26 per dozen eggs, middlemen are making Tk 20-24 in profit by manipulating the market. Similarly, farmers are losing Tk 45-47 per kg of broiler meat, but middlemen are earning nearly Tk 40 per kg, a situation that ultimately affects end-consumers, they said.
Some farm owners said a surge in production earlier in the year, coupled with seasonal shifts towards winter vegetables and fish, has led to a glut that middlemen have exploited to drive farm-gate prices down further.
Consumers may be happy with slightly lower prices today, but the destruction of small-scale farming infrastructure is a disaster for food security, said another BPICC leader. Once the small farms are gone, the market will turn into a monopoly. Prices will then skyrocket, and the poor will no longer be able to afford their primary source of protein, he added.
Poultry industry leaders are now demanding urgent government action to save the industry, including setting minimum and maximum floor price for eggs and meat, reducing raw material prices, providing emergency refinancing for farmers, and offering subsidies during the off-season.
They also called for establishment of cold storage facilities for meat and eggs, exploring export markets, and stricter market monitoring to check manipulation by the middlemen.