Overview:
Feed prices have risen sharply from 400 to 600 Egyptian pounds per ton, squeezing poultry producers despite steady consumer prices between 85 and 90 pounds per kilogram. The cost-price imbalance is reducing margins at farms and wholesale level, with breeding stock trading at 72-73 pounds per kilogram at farm gate versus 90 pounds retail. Simultaneously, food inflation has broadened across edible oils, canned cheese, beans, and lentils, prompting calls for stricter market oversight.
Details:
Medhat Shalaby, vice chairman of the Alexandria Businessmen's Association, hosted a Chinese delegation led by Tang Jilan, deputy chair of the Sichuan Province People's Friendship Association, alongside Xue Min, China's consul general in Alexandria, to explore industrial, technology, and renewable energy partnerships. The meeting aimed to establish commercial channels and investment opportunities between Egyptian and Chinese enterprises.
Poultry sector losses intensify as feed input costs climbed 50 percent while retail chicken prices remained static. Tharwat Al-Zeyni, deputy chair of the Poultry Producers' Union, attributed the gap to higher livestock feed expenses, which producers cannot pass to consumers without losing market share. White chicken trades at 72-76 pounds per kilogram at farm level and 85-90 pounds retail; red chicken (Sassou breed) at 102-104 pounds farm, 113-118 pounds retail; local breeds at 115 pounds farm, 125-130 pounds retail.
Prices of cooking oil, canned cheese, dried beans, and lentils rose this week. Mixing oil reached 100 pounds per liter (up from 90), while 250-gram canned cheese rose to 30 pounds (from 24). Hazem Al-Manoufi, member of the food commodities section at the Chamber of Commerce, called for enhanced regulatory oversight to prevent hoarding and stabilize pricing.
Outlook:
Market observers are monitoring whether poultry producers will consolidate or exit the sector if feed-to-retail price gaps persist. Regulators face pressure to balance consumer affordability with farm viability as input inflation spreads beyond poultry into grain, oil, and protein products.