Eid cattle traders will suffer for high asking price: livestock minister

Abdur Rahman says cattle will remain unsold if the traders continue to charge the customers higher than usual rates

Bangladesh has a surplus of animals for sacrifice during Eid-ul-Azha, so there is no reason for the traders to charge customers higher than usual, Fisheries and Livestock Minister Abdur Rahman has said.

The traders will ultimately suffer with their cattle unsold if they keep the asking price high, the minister said at a press conference at the Secretariat on Thursday.

He claimed Bangladesh has 13 million cattle ready for sacrifice during Eid against a demand for 10.7 million.

A journalist asked what the benefit of a surplus is when calculations show the price of sacrificial cows is more than Tk 1,000 per kg, much higher than the current price of beef.

“Maybe some people have increased the price through manipulation. But they will suffer at the end of the day. Because we have an adequate supply,” the minister said.

He added that fixing the price was “not his duty”, and the market will do this itself.

“According to definitions we know from general economics, the price depends on supply and demand. In that case, the market will determine the price. How can I fix the price?”

However, speaking about egg prices, Rahman said he would sit with the poultry farmers to determine the price.

The farmers cite a high cost of imported poultry feed for the egg price rise, but it is “unjustifiable”, according to him.

“We will sit with them again to learn how much it takes to produce an egg and how much profit they need to make. Then we’ll fix the price. We’ll surely keep an eye on egg prices.”