KARACHI, Feb 6: While majority of the consumers still appear frightened to taste chicken tikka, the two poultry associations on Wednesday tried to allay their fears.

They pushed up the prices by Rs10 per kg claiming 20 per cent increase in demand coupled with a slight change in consumers’ perception about bird flu.

On the contrary, hoteliers and caterers still complain about very small placement of orders for chicken-related dishes by the consumers. Some retailers of beef and mutton have started charging Rs10-20 per kg more after many consumers shifted to the red meat.

The Karachi Wholesalers Poultry Association (KWPA) has issued the live bird rate at Rs60 per kg as compared to Rs50 per kg on Tuesday last. The meat rate has been increased to Rs102 from Rs86 per kg. The Pakistan Poultry Association (PPA) has quoted the retail rate at Rs58 per kg.

Retailers in different areas said that the consumers were still panicky after the bird flu case in Gadap as they keep asking about the quality of white meat. However, people are still not turning up in higher numbers, they added.

Manager La Rosh Restaurant and Catering Service Zubair Ahmed said that there had been 60-70 per cent decline in orders for chicken related dishes for wedding receptions and even for dining at the restaurant.

He said the hotel management had been requesting the consumers to refrain from eating Chinese dishes, which are prepared in low degree heat as well as some light fried chicken related dishes and even Bar B.Q. items. He added that the chicken was being replaced mostly with mutton rather than beef.

Food and Beverage Manager of Lal Qila restaurant Abrar Shaikh said that there had been slight difference in orders for dishes made of chicken after the bird flu case but he could not give the exact percentage of the decline. However, he said the hotel management had been informing the customers through pamphlets that the chicken was fit for consumption as it was being cooked at over 80 degree centigrade.

Owner of Taj Catering in Gulshan-e-Iqbal Mohammad Iqbal said that the poultry people were not giving the real market facts and the situation was same as of last week with 90 per cent decline in chicken related orders for parties and receptions.

He added that no price increase was seen in mutton and beef since demand had been average owing to slow pace of the on-going marriage season after Ashura.

A caterer in North Nazimabad said that the people were still not placing orders for chicken dishes. A hotel owner in Saddar said that orders for chicken dishes had declined sharply.

General Secretary of Meat Merchants Welfare Association (MMWA) Iqbal Qureishi said that the price of all meat varieties had increased by an average Rs10 per kg after Ashura not because of consumers’ switchover from chicken but because of short arrival of animals from the upcountry.

He said that the arrival of animals from Punjab had bottomed out after chilling weather while animals were coming from Sindh but in very limited numbers.

PPA and KWPA are of the view that whenever prices of birds come down in bird flu crisis, the lower middle class rushes to buy chicken, which nullifies the impact of falling sales to the quality conscious consumers.A PPA spokesman Abdul Maroof Siddiqui said that the chicken demand recovered by 20 per cent on Monday as compared to Friday and Saturday last week.

On Monday, some 350,000 birds were slaughtered as compared to 500,000 birds ahead of bird flu case in Gadap. After confirmation the of bird flu case, daily slaughtering of bird had dipped to 200,000. He claimed that all the birds that arrived from the farms on Sunday night had been sold out on Monday.

He linked the increase in demand to falling rates and clearing of consumers’ fears about bird flu. However, he said that there had been low supplies from the farms due to low production.

He said that the price of a-day-old chick had surged to Rs4-6 from Rs2-3. Ahead of Gadap town incident, a day-old-chick was selling at Rs7-9.

Estimating a loss of Rs1 billion since the bird flu confirmation, he said farmers are now putting up a-day-old chick at their farms after recovery in consumers’ demand.

KWPA general secretary Kamal Akhtar Siddiqui said that the demand for birds had increased by 20 per cent. He said that the bird flu crisis had led to increase in price of veil meat (with and without bones) and mutton by Rs10-20 and Rs20-30 per kg, respectively, but still chicken is cheaper than the red meat.