Shoppers in Azerbaijan are reporting chicken fillet prices of 10 to 12 manats per kilogram and shortages at some stores, while producers say they have not raised wholesale prices and are producing enough poultry.
Customers interviewed by the Xəbərin olsun television program said they previously bought fillet for 6 to 7 manats but now find it at much higher prices. One store shown in the report offered it at 10.80 manats per kilogram.
Some consumers link stronger demand for chicken to higher beef prices as families seek a cheaper substitute for red meat. The former budget alternative, however, is also becoming more expensive at retail.
Prices Reported by Producers
Murvat Hasanli, chairman of the Poultry Meat and Egg Producers and Exporters Association, said factories are supplying products at the same prices as a year earlier.
He put the wholesale price of chilled whole chicken at 4.20 to 4.80 manats per kilogram and fillet at 6.20 to 7.20 manats. The categories are not interchangeable: the price of a whole chicken is not the price of fillet.
Hasanli also said production has increased and that there is no general shortage of chicken meat. The accounts therefore diverge: consumers report high prices and difficulty finding fillet, while producers deny raising prices at the factory level.
Where the Difference May Arise
Delivery, storage and retail costs are added between a factory sale and the price paid by a shopper. The visible gap between the quoted wholesale and retail prices nevertheless raises the question of how much results from those costs and how much from the retail markup.
The gap by itself does not prove wrongdoing. A proper comparison must use the same product, supply conditions and sellers’ actual expenses. At the same time, statements about sufficient production do not explain an empty shelf at a particular store.
Source: Vesti Baku.