Poultry Prices Collapse In Odisha After Coronavirus Spooks Consumers

Balasore: While Coronavirus scare has gripped the entire world, it has severely affected the poultry industry in Odisha's Balasore district where the prices of the broiler have drastically fallen after people have started avoiding its consumption.

Though chicken is reportedly being sold at Rs 30 per kilogram in the district headquarters town, people hesitate to buy and consume the product amid rumours that Coronavirus can transmit through eating the chicken.

"We are not consuming chicken now. Awareness is being spread among the locals to avoid consuming meat even though the price has come down drastically due to Coronavirus outbreak in several parts of the world. We advice people to refrain from eating chicken until the situation becomes normal," said Dipta Tripathy, a resident of Balasore.

The poor sale of chicken has left poultry businessmen in a state of worry. They said that either lack of awareness or fear among the people has forced them to stay away from non-veg meals.

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"Our business has been badly affected due to fear among people over Coronavirus. People are so frightened that they don't buy chicken even though the prices are very low now. We sell one kg of chicken for Rs 30," said Sarbeswar Sahu, owner of Sahu Boilers.

Health officials, on the other hand, informed that consuming chicken will not cause any problem if they are cooked well.

"Coronavirus has now become a health emergency globally due to which WHO has declared it as a pandemic. There is no harm in consuming any non-veg items like meat, fish and eggs. People have a wrong notion that Coronavirus can be transmitted through consumption of chicken. There will be no problem if people eat them after cooking properly," informed Balasore CDMO, BP Chhotray.

"We have taken steps to spread awareness among the people in this regard," he added.

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