Sham Zainuddin, 36, said that while the price of chicken had reduced, the new ceiling price meant their profit margins were slim.
Suppliers sell chicken to vendors at RM8.60 per kg, a rate set by the government, while the highest a trader could sell it to consumers – based on the latest ceiling – was RM9.40.
“We can profit but it’s not much,” said Sham, who has been selling chicken for 10 years at the Datuk Keramat wet market.
He told FMT that some traders might find it difficult to comply with the ceiling price, as every trader buys at different prices from different suppliers.
“The price depends on the number of chickens you’re purchasing as well, so smaller traders that take only 20 or 30 chickens are more likely to be charged more, after counting delivery and packaging costs.”
On Wednesday, agriculture and food industries minister Ronald Kiandee announced the new ceiling price for chicken at RM9.40 per kg starting July.
A trader who only wanted to be known as Yap, 37, said suppliers themselves were not complying with the rates. He is still purchasing chicken at RM9.20 per kg.
Yap said it would be “illogical” to comply with the ceiling price, as they were barely making any profit.
“What the government says and what is really happening on the ground, are two different things. The government doesn’t supply chicken so they can set any price they like, but in reality, they’re just driving down everybody’s profits,” said Yap, who sells chicken at the Kepong Baru market.
Wong, who has been selling chicken for over three decades, said he had to switch to selling kampung chicken as it was no longer profitable to sell broiler chicken.
“If the government asks us to sell it at RM9.40, but I get it at RM9 or RM10, how would I make a profit? It’s impossible.” The prices the farms are giving traders and the rates set by the government, were completely different, he added.
Another chicken seller, Harun Matt, 49, said they were making “marginal profits”, but were hopeful that this would change. “We were told the prices would be reduced as the government would be regulating the supplier’s prices as well.”