AGRICULTURE and Food Security Deputy Minister Chan Foong Hin said temporary price controls for eggs and chicken have now ended, hoping that this will ensure the local market will function freely again.He stated the government has borne RM3.8 bil just for egg and chicken subsidies since it was implemented in February 2022.“Considering the current trend, the supply of chicken and eggs has returned to stability and the current market price is now lower, hence the ceiling price control is no longer relevant.“The production of eggs and chicken in Malaysia has reached the level of self-sufficiency for a long time, but faced some disruption in the supply chain at the end of last year,” he said in a statement today.The issue of egg shortages since the unity government took power last year has kept the authorities on their toes as they tried to ensure there were enough supplies.Several politicians within the government bench and in the opposition aimed at the government for the shortage of eggs. The matter was temporarily solved with the import of eggs from India and that too was heavily criticised by some.Nevertheless, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim when presenting the Budget 2024 announced that the temporary price control for eggs and chicken that had been previously set will be removed.He said the government is considering floating the price of chicken and eggs based on a lower price than the government’s float price.Anwar also said that the Agriculture and Food Security Ministry (KPKM) had consulted with producers and ensured that there were no unreasonable increases by companies and traders. – Oct 14, 2023
