Polish poultry sector faces COVID-19 storm
Poultry market in Poland is going down faster than in other EU member states and that could trigger a wave of bankruptcies in the sector, warns the Polish National Poultry Council - Chamber of Commerce (KRD-IG). Statistical data from mid-March to mid-April show that the average EU price for broiler has lost 8.4% in value. However, the decline in the Polish market is far more, 37%, says KRD-IG. The problem may add 40 million birds per month in a market already confronted with a surplus of poultry. Due to a sudden switch from high-value meats to cheaper products, most of the EU member states have seen a surge in demand for poultry but that is mostly covered from domestic sources as the foodservice sector has been closed since March across the continent.
Unfortunately, the situation is similar in other parts of the world and Poland, as the EU's largest producer of poultry and one of the world's largest exporters, is now facing a crisis in its most performant agri-food sector. "The coronavirus pandemic has caused the inability to sell eggs, chicks or raised birds, which can lead to a wave of bankruptcies in the sector", added KRD-IG on its Tweeter account.
Meantime, the European Commission presented a private storage aid (PSA) scheme only for beef and sheepmeat, considering that pork and poultry industries may face these uncertain times thanks to exports and domestic consumption. However, this may not be the case for the Polish poultry industry, who is looking to get support from the national government in this crisis. "The introduction of a subsidy program for private storage of poultry meat is intended to remove surplus raw material from the market so that after the restoration of the Horeca sector in the European Union, it will gradually trade", explained Dariusz Goszczy?ski, general director of KDR-IG in an interview for PortalSpozywczy magazine.
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