PUTRAJAYA, Oct 9 — The subsidies for chicken breeders and chicken egg producers have been extended from October until December this year, at a rate of RM0.80 per kilogramme (kg) for chickens and RM0.08 per egg, said Datuk Seri Ronald Kiandee.

The Agriculture and Food Industries Minister said this decision was made at the Cabinet meeting on Friday (Oct 7) to ease the burden of poultry breeders, following rising production costs, especially chicken feed which accounts for 70 per cent of operating costs, apart from the costs of day-old chicks, logistics, workers, utilities and medicines.

“This decision was made after taking into consideration the need to maintain the ceiling price of standard chicken at the retail level at RM9.40/kg and retail ceiling prices of grades A, B and C chicken eggs at RM0.45, RM0.43 and RM0.41 each respectively in Peninsular Malaysia,” he said in a statement today.

He said the subsidy payments would be deposited directly into the accounts of farmers via Agrobank as per existing mechanism, involving private breeders, integrator or semi-integrator breeders and contract breeders.

The ministry would ensure that the payment process was implemented smoothly to guarantee continuity in production at the farm level, he added.

He said the extension of the subsidy scheme involved an additional financial implication of RM573.96 million to the government.

Allocations for chicken and egg subsidies for the period from February to September 2022 amounted to RM1.233 billion.

“As at Oct 4, a total of 13,440 subsidy claim applications worth RM1.136 billion have been approved by the ministry and all breeders can continue to submit their applications for subsidies,” Ronald said.

He said the government was committed to ensuring that the poultry industry remains sustainable by continuing to give subsidy, apart from ensuring timely and adequate supply of chicken and eggs at reasonable prices for the benefit of Keluarga Malaysia (the Malaysian Family). — Bernama