Rabat- A Moroccan citizen stands in front of a poultry shop in one of the working-class neighborhoods on the outskirts of Rabat, asking about the price of a kilogram of live turkey. The seller tells him the price is 27 dirhams (about 2.7 dollars). He smiles and leaves empty-handed.
White meat is one of the basic items on the Moroccan table, and it is the most consumed given its prices that are suitable for the pockets of the poor and middle classes compared to the prices of red meat.
The state of discontent over the high price of poultry spread to social media, where activists launched calls to boycott buying poultry until its price drops, as part of confronting the high price by dispensing with it.
However, many citizens had no choice but to buy, and they were filled with regret and sorrow because the summer season is associated with organizing wedding parties and Moroccans receiving their families living abroad.
White and red meats are essential elements of the Moroccan wedding table, with roasted chicken and beef garnished with prunes being served.
Fatima Al-Zahraa says that her family had allocated a budget to organize her sister’s wedding in the summer, but they were surprised that this budget was not enough given the rise in food prices, so they had no choice but to organize a family wedding and reduce the number of invitees.
During a tour of the markets in the popular areas, the price of a kilogram of turkey ranged between 27 and 30 dirhams (between 2.77 and 3 dollars), and local chicken between 70 and 75 dirhams (between 7 and 7.5 dollars), while the price of a kilogram of lamb reached 120 dirhams (12 dollars) and a kilogram of beef 100 dirhams (10 dollars), while the prices of fruits ranged between 15 and 30 dirhams per kilogram (between 1.5 and 3 dollars).
Reasons and explanations
Mustafa Al-Montaser, head of the National Association of Poultry Meat Producers, explains to Al Jazeera Net the rise in white meat prices for several reasons.
- High temperatures in July caused a 25% drop in yield.
- High demand as the high cost of red meat has made consumers turn to white meat.
- High feed prices have led to lower production.
Al-Muntasir says, “After the Covid-19 crisis, feed prices rose globally and then fell in many countries of the world, except in Morocco, where they remained the same, which made farmers afraid to invest, as the high cost, in their view, is a big risk.”
The spokesman pointed out that professionals had warned on previous occasions of this scenario occurring, but the government did not heed their warnings.
He explained, “We previously warned that the lack of investment in the sector due to the high prices of feed will lead to a decrease in production and prices will rise in the summer due to the high demand and low supply.”
According to the spokesman, white meat constitutes 58% of the animal proteins consumed by Moroccans, while the rest is consumed through red meat and fish.
Al-Muntaser points out that the weekly production of white meat used to be about 1,200 tons, through raising 9 million and 200 thousand chicks, but currently the production reaches 8 million chicks per week.
As for the rise in red meat prices, Hisham Al-Jawabri, the regional secretary of wholesale meat traders in Casablanca, explains this by the successive years of drought that have affected the local herd.
Al-Jawabri explained to Al Jazeera Net that the lack of rain was accompanied by high prices of fodder, which prompted farmers to get rid of their herds, noting that the government had opened the door to imports, but that it was an expensive and complicated process.
The spokesman said that the feed support provided by the government to farmers is insufficient and is spent in a traditional way, which makes it without any result or impact on production.
Al-Jawabri explained, “The government provides farmers with bags of barley as part of the fodder support, which is not enough, as the herd does not only need barley, but also other types of fodder such as millet, which is expensive.”
The spokesman suggested several measures to the government to deal with the situation, including that the import process be carried out flexibly, smoothly and without complications on the part of the National Office for Health Safety and the Ministry of Agriculture, and then providing real support to farmers to encourage them to increase production.
In the long term, Al-Jawabri proposes banning the slaughter of ewes and cows to intensify breeding with a view to achieving self-sufficiency in the local herd, as was the case before the drought years.
Al-Jawabri expected that red meat prices would not witness a decrease in the coming period, saying, “For professionals, the available data does not indicate the possibility of a decrease in red meat prices. If they do not rise, they will not fall.”
In contrast, Mustafa Al-Muntasir expected that the prices of white meat would begin to decline starting from August 25 until September 15, when they would return to their previous levels of 15 dirhams ($1.5) per kilogram of chicken.
Discontent and grumbling
The high prices included many food items, including meat, fish, fruits, and services, which led to a general state of discontent and discontent spreading among citizens from the poor and middle classes.
MP for the Progress and Socialism Party, Nadia Tahami, directed written questions to the Minister of Agriculture, Maritime Fisheries, Rural Development, Water and Forests, asking him about the increase in the prices of many basic commodities, including white and red meat.
The parliamentarian told Al Jazeera Net that she had observed in her meetings with citizens a state of anger due to the high prices in the summer season, which witnesses an increase in consumption, due to the organization of parties and Moroccans receiving their families residing abroad.
She added, “Poultry meat, which is one of the most consumed items by citizens, has witnessed a tremendous and skyrocketing increase and is no longer available to consumers as it was before.”
The spokeswoman said that the high prices affected all types of basic materials, in contrast to the weak purchasing power of citizens, noting that fruits, for example, despite their abundance in the markets, their prices are expensive and do not suit the pockets of citizens, including those belonging to the middle class.
MP Nadia Tahami stressed that the role of her opposition party is to alert the government to the suffering of citizens from the high prices of most basic commodities and to urge it to intervene urgently to protect consumers, curb the skyrocketing prices and take the necessary measures to monitor prices, warning that the government’s failure to intervene to support citizens’ purchasing power could turn discontent into protests.
Government meetings
To deal with this situation, the government has initiated a series of meetings with professionals to discuss production chains and food security.
Last week, the Minister of Agriculture, Maritime Fisheries, Rural Development, Water and Forests, Mohamed Sadiki, chaired two working meetings, respectively, with professionals of the red meat and milk chains, during which the situation of national livestock, the prices of animals and red meat, and various issues related to imports and the natural supply of the national market with red meat and milk were discussed.
A statement from the ministry explained that the parties agreed during these meetings on a number of measures aimed at preserving the gains associated with the development of the two chains, including:
- Continuing to support livestock feed for the benefit of cattle and sheep breeders and compound products for fattening, supporting the import of animal feed, and preparing a law on livestock breeding.
- Developing drought-tolerant forage crops, such as white maize.
- Organizing artificial insemination, importing and selling seeds, and developing the production of more productive hybrid breeds.
- Preserving female sheep and cows, and developing a regulatory framework for cow and sheep fattening units.
In a statement to the Maghreb Arab Press Agency following these meetings, the Minister stressed the importance of measures aimed at ensuring the supply of the national market with red meat and milk and facilitating the import of raw materials for feed and ingredients such as milk powder for the production of cheese and other dairy products.
