Barbadians could be paying more for chicken and other meats from next week.
That’s because the main feed supplier – Pinnacle Feeds Limited – will be increasing the cost of the product to livestock farmers from Wednesday and that price is expected to be passed on to consumers.
Director of Pinnacle Feeds, Jason Sambrano announced on Friday that with Government’s temporary price support to farmers coming to an end, his company will be raising the price to them by an average of 3.7 per cent, as opposed to the previous 8.9 per cent back in August.
Government initially invested some $2 million in price support in May this year to cover three months and then extended that subsidy to another three months which ends this month.
And today, Sambrano emphasised the importance of the role Government has taken.
He added: “We want to thank the Government of Barbados for their intervention in supporting the livestock industry. Thankfully, since then, there has been a reduction in grain pricing on the world market and the adjustment required at this time is lower than what was required back in September.
“The increase at this time would be 3.7 per cent on average as opposed to the 8.9 per cent previously supported through the government’s intervention,” he stated.
The company executive argued that the Government’s price support comes at a time when global economies are still grappling with rising inflation due to the significant increase in raw materials and transportation costs.
“We continue to look at ways of managing expenses to help control the financial impact of these changes. As we are aware of the pivotal role we play in the livestock industry, we have always taken a responsible approach to our pricing in the market,” Sambrano pointed out.
He suggested that Pinnacle Feeds had previously delivered price stability for several years and reduced the price of feed when possible.
“By announcing this difficult – yet necessary – step, Pinnacle Feeds continues to work with its industry partners to ensure we continue to deliver value and optimise grower productivity,” the business leader added.
Sambrano said the company aims to ensure that the sector is sustainable for local farmers, putting in long-term and short-term strategies to support customers.
Earlier this year, Minister of Agriculture Indar Weir announced that Government was moving ahead with plans to break the Pinnacle Feeds monopoly by opening up the market for other feed plants to set up and compete.
Weir had also told Barbados TODAY that his ministry had already received expressions of interest from a number of investors to establish feed plants here.
He had contended that in a small country such as Barbados a monopoly could become so dominant that the consumer would lose his sovereignty.
When contacted on Friday Minister Weir pledged to address the issue shortly. emmanueljoseph@barbadostoday.bb
