Consumers lament scarcity of frozen foods
By Sunday Ogundare
Consumers of frozen foods especially turkey and chicken have expressed displeasure over scarcity of the foods closure of the major borders across the country.
For sometimes now, turkey has been scarce in the market and the price of chickens has gone up.
Speaking with ECHONEWS, the CEO of All Crown Foods and Drinks Affairs, a major distributor of frozen foods, Mrs. Adeola Adebayo said the few available turkey at many cold rooms were getting rotten, noting that the closure of borders has affected the products.
“Presently there is no turkey at any cold room. The one I got at a particular cold room is getting rotten. The owner of the cold room too could not sell it. We can’t get turkey now until the borders are opened.
“For now we can only get fish and chicken. Even those ones too are now a little more expensive due to the closure of the border. A kilo of chicken is now N1,400 compared to N1,100 and N1,200 it used to be before.”
Adebayo said the closure of borders did not affect fish, it only affected chicken and turkey.
Meanwhile, poultry farmers have also decried the closure of the border, saying it has affected their farming business as well.
According to the managements of Kenko Farms and Naomi Farms located in the Ejigbo and Oshodi respectively, since the borders were closed, there has been increase in the prices of livestock feeds and day old chick which they might not be able to cope with.
They said despite the hike in the prices of the feeds, the price of eggs has relatively remained the same.
The farmers who are supposed to be preparing for the forthcoming New Year festival complained that they have been significantly affected by the price inflation.
The Head of Administration, Kenko Farms, Akorede Peter said: “ , bird products are not supposed to be affected in the process of correcting our importation of rice which is affecting our local rice industries from growing, which is the common goal of our economy.
“In the process of correcting that, other economic aspects shouldn’t be affectedc”
The CEO of Naomi Farms, Mr. Ben also stated that most poultry farmers who cannot cope with the current market prices of feeds would have to wait till when the prices deflate a little.
“This would affect the target season breeding of birds before they can be released to the market and how to embark on fresh poultry farming business for the year 2020.”
