Kurdish poultry sales continue to decline after Iraqi import ban
ERBIL, Kurdistan region— The sale of poultry has seen another decline in both value and volume in Kurdistan region after Baghdad imposed a ban on the import of Kurdish poultry goods to the central and south of Iraq in January.
Head of the Union of Poultry Producers in Kurdistan told Rudaw that the ban had cost the industry millions of dollars as the prices of poultry products rapidly went down by nearly 40 percent in the first quarter of 2016.
“Some of the producers have gone out of business and others have laid off large numbers of their employees,” Salah Bakir said.
Bakir, who also owns a poultry firm, said that any crisis with Baghdad could cost the regional industry dearly as more than half of Kurdish poultry goods are exported to Iraqi markets in central and southern provinces.
There are over 1,200 poultry firms in Kurdistan region that produce nearly 120,000 tons of meat. According to the union’s data, nearly 10 percent of the producers have closed their businesses over the past three months after repeated losses.
“There are registered producers who have laid off 40 employees in one day only to avoid bankruptcy,” Bakir said and added that the Kurdish government was currently unable to assist them due to its own disputes with Baghdad and the recent financial crunch that has hit the region.
Iraqi authorities have said the ban was imposed after they detected instances of bird flu among the imported poultry from Kurdistan Region. But Bakir dismissed Baghdad’s claim and said the decision was politically motivated after relations between Iraq and Erbil deteriorated further in recent months.
The union now tries to find new markets in the region particularly in Syrian Kurdistan, which is said to have a growing demand for poultry products.
Head of the Union of Poultry Producers in Kurdistan told Rudaw that the ban had cost the industry millions of dollars as the prices of poultry products rapidly went down by nearly 40 percent in the first quarter of 2016.
“Some of the producers have gone out of business and others have laid off large numbers of their employees,” Salah Bakir said.
Bakir, who also owns a poultry firm, said that any crisis with Baghdad could cost the regional industry dearly as more than half of Kurdish poultry goods are exported to Iraqi markets in central and southern provinces.
There are over 1,200 poultry firms in Kurdistan region that produce nearly 120,000 tons of meat. According to the union’s data, nearly 10 percent of the producers have closed their businesses over the past three months after repeated losses.
“There are registered producers who have laid off 40 employees in one day only to avoid bankruptcy,” Bakir said and added that the Kurdish government was currently unable to assist them due to its own disputes with Baghdad and the recent financial crunch that has hit the region.
Iraqi authorities have said the ban was imposed after they detected instances of bird flu among the imported poultry from Kurdistan Region. But Bakir dismissed Baghdad’s claim and said the decision was politically motivated after relations between Iraq and Erbil deteriorated further in recent months.
The union now tries to find new markets in the region particularly in Syrian Kurdistan, which is said to have a growing demand for poultry products.