ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iran has started to shift from an exporter to importer of red and white meats due to a surge in demand, in the wake of the spread of a viral disease that has crippled the sector.
One of the places hard hit by the foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is the Bokan livestock market in Western Iran (Rojhelat) that has been subject to three closures over the past four months.
"They have closed down the market. It should not be opened and closed in this way all the time. We and the municipality both are to blame. If the municipality does not let people bring in animals, we would not come here," Mohammed Hussein Farajyan, a livestock owner in Bokan, told Rudaw.
Farajyan is worried that people have seen "significant damage" due to the crisis.
“The situation in the market is very, very bad," he added.
This viral disease means less dairy and meat products, causing price hikes. It also puts a heavy financial burden on livestock owners to treat their animals.
Yousif Sha Mohammedi, another livestock owner, describes the situation as "miserable".
"The market condition is miserable, now that the FDM has spread. Pesticides provided by veterinarians are of low quality. I dare say it is more like a juice and has no impact. The disease leaves a significant impact on big livestock such as cows. It has less influence on small-scale animals. I hope veterinarians give us better quality medicines," he said.
In addition to the FDM disease, a drastic decline in the number of livestock in Iran and the western Kurdish areas of the country has caused chicken and meat prices to soar.
Iran's agriculture ministry has said it will allow meat imports to stabilize market demands.
"We have a 30 percent surplus in meat production capacity compared to the country's needs, and we have the potential to export. Countries in the region need Iranian chickens, but due to mismanagement, we are unable to export them," said Yaaqub Yawari, a member of Iran Feed Industry Association.
He said Iran was "previously an exporter but has now become an importer.”
According to Iran's Central Bank, the average consumption of red meat per Iranian individual is approximately 700 grams, and the consumption of chicken is 30 kilograms per person annually. Based on the country's population, approximately 600,000 tons of red meat and two million tons of chicken meat are consumed every year.
According to the latest statistics, the price of red meat has increased by more than 645 percent and the price of one kilogram of chicken meat by more than 500 percent in the last five years.
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