Egg sales halted in Tejgaon market amid concerns over govt monitoring

Traders in Tejgaon wholesale market, one of the largest wholesale egg markets in the capital, have halted sales owing to concerns over the government's price enforcement actions. 

This has sparked fears of a potential egg shortage in Dhaka's kitchen markets, prompting retailers to raise egg prices by Tk10-Tk15 per dozen.

Wholesalers said they stopped egg sales on Sunday, and no trucks arrived that night to replenish stocks at Tejgaon market, which receives 14-15 lakh eggs daily, supplying various regions of Dhaka

As a result, the price of a dozen broiler chicken eggs in Dhaka's retail markets today reached Tk180, up from Tk165-Tk170 just two to three days earlier.  

On 15 September, the government mandated that the price of a dozen brown broiler eggs cannot exceed Tk143. It also set the retail price at Tk11.87, with production costs pegged at Tk10.58 and wholesale prices at Tk11.1. 

Following this order, the Directorate of National Consumer Rights Protection has begun fining sellers for exceeding the government-set prices.  

However, wholesalers said they are buying each egg for Tk12-Tk12.20, making it impossible to sell at the government-mandated price.

Mohammad Amanat Ullah, former president of the Tejgaon Egg Merchants' Association, told TBS, "We cannot purchase eggs at lower prices to sell at the designated rate. If we sell at higher prices, we face fines. Under these circumstances, we have stopped sales."

Businesses said the Directorate of Consumer Rights has called a meeting for Tuesday morning with egg suppliers, wholesalers, and representatives from the poultry sector.

Amanat Ullah said, "We will resume egg sales as soon as this issue is resolved at the meeting."

Egg shortage

According to the livestock department, flooding has damaged farms, leading to a daily shortfall of 50 lakh eggs. Consequently, supply has decreased from 4.5 crore eggs per day to 4 crore against a demand of 5 crore.

To stabilise the market, the government has granted permission for the import of 4.5 crore eggs. While this news briefly lowered prices, the cost of broiler chicken eggs has risen by Tk10-15 per dozen in the past two days.

Data from the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB) indicate that on Monday, the price for a hali (four pieces) of eggs in the Dhaka market was Tk60, a 12.38% increase compared to a month ago.