Traders fix raw hide prices ahead of Eid

Leather goods traders and tanners have jointly declared the prices for hides and skins of sacrificial animals ahead of the Eid-ul-Azha.

Tanners will buy cow hide at Tk 50 per square foot in Dhaka and Tk 40 in the rest of the county this year, lowering the price slightly from last year's rate.

The price of goat hide has been set at Tk 20 for all of Bangladesh and for 'Baqra' goats, it is Tk 15.

Bangladesh Finished Leather and Footwear Exporters Association's (BFLFEA) President Mohiuddin Ahmed Mahin announced the prices at a press conference on Friday morning in Dhaka.

Asked why the price for buffalo hide was not fixed, he said, "Not many buffaloes are sacrificed in Bangladesh (during Eid-ul-Azha). But we'll buy the hides at Tk 25 per square foot if some comes our way."

Last year, the price for cow hide was Tk 50-55 in Dhaka and Tk 40-45 elsewhere.

The price of goat hide was Tk 20-22 per square foot, for 'Baqra goat' Tk 15-17 and for buffalo hide Tk 35-40.

Bangladesh Tanners' Association (BTA) President Shahin Ahmed said the prices had been lowered due to a 35 percent fall in the international market in past one year.

"We still have at least 30 percent hides we had bought last year preserved."

Ahmed said, "We hope the tannery owners won't start any 'unhealthy' competition while buying hides. If they do, seasonal traders will face losses."

On Monday, a week before the Eid, Commerce Minister Tofail had given the traders 48 hours to fix the prices.

“It (prices) should be realistic so that the people get a fair price while the traders in the leather industry do not count loss," the minister had said.

According to Tofail, the government would not allow 'syndicates' after retailers had complained that they suffered losses during the Eid-ul-Azha every year.

According to the government, around 3.3 million cows and buffaloes were ready to be supplied to meet the demand of sacrificial animals this year.

BTA says Bangladesh processes around 220 million square foot of leather every year, half of which is sourced during this time, when millions of animals are slaughtered as part of the Eid ritual.

BTA President Shahin on Friday also said they would have to take the hides to the Hazaribagh tanneries despite a government ban during this Eid season.

"But raw hides would also be sent to the Leather Industrial City in Savar."

He said 30 tanneries from Hazaribagh have been transferred to Savar. "Several more will shift within the next month."

But, he warned, localities situated near the Savar industrial city will face pollution and harm if the solid and liquid waste removal system is not up and running very soon.