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Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com...-poultry-hub-Namakkal/articleshow/4487987.cms
Egg exports down by 10.15% at India's poultry hub Namakkal
5 May 2009, 2154 hrs IST, S Sujatha, ET Bureau
COIMBATORE: Following the outbreak of Bird Flu in Northeast India
, the gulf countries banned poultry products from India for most part of 2008-09 and it led to fall in egg exports from Namakkal zone during the year. To facilitate export of eggs from non-affected regions, the farmers in Namakkal have called for compartmentalization of farms or separate zoning of each state.
Namakkal zone, which is the poultry hub of India, reported a drop of 10.15% in egg exports last year compared to the previous year. Data compiled by National Egg Coordination Committee (NECC) showed the region exported 10,986 lakh eggs in 2008-09 against 12,228 lakh eggs in the previous year.
The region, which accounts for 90% of the total egg exports from the country, is said to have suffered due to the ban on imports in the Middle East. It was imposed though there were no reported cases of Avian Influenza outbreak in Namakkal zone. "We are thousands of kilometers away from Tripura, the place where the flu out break started and still we are not able to export to Middle East countries because the whole country is treated as one zone," said Mr K S Ponnuswamy, proprietor of KSP Feeds, Namakkal.
Since February 2006, when the first outbreak of Avian Influenza
was reported in India, the country has been facing a downturn in exports. But, it also paved way to explore other potential countries for export of eggs and Afghanistan turned out to be one.
In 2007-08, when the ban was lifted for the whole year exports to Afghanistan and Africa almost doubled . However, last year was the worst affected with the ban lifted for only few days during November 2008.
"After the country declared itself to be bird flu free on November 4, 2008, an outbreak was reported on November 11, 2008 and therefore the Middle East ban was more or less present throughout the year," said Mr VKS Sivakumar, MD, VKS Exports. His company holds a 70% market share in egg exports from India.
Namakkal zone was regularly shipping 30 lakh eggs to Gulf Countries everyday before the ban. "With newer markets, we could have grown three-fold in egg exports," said Mr P Valsan, secretary of All India Poultry Products Exporters Association.
"But to achieve that our government should take proper steps by bringing the whole industry under single window system and establish a Poultry Development Board," he added.
Dr A T Venugopal, who is a technical consultant for poultry farmers in India, told ET that the state government should implement a Notifiable Avian Influenza (NAI) free establishment within Highly Pathogenic Notifiable Avian Influenza (HPNA) free compartment as per terrestial Animal Health Code of OIE, 2008.
Egg exports down by 10.15% at India's poultry hub Namakkal
5 May 2009, 2154 hrs IST, S Sujatha, ET Bureau
COIMBATORE: Following the outbreak of Bird Flu in Northeast India
, the gulf countries banned poultry products from India for most part of 2008-09 and it led to fall in egg exports from Namakkal zone during the year. To facilitate export of eggs from non-affected regions, the farmers in Namakkal have called for compartmentalization of farms or separate zoning of each state.
Namakkal zone, which is the poultry hub of India, reported a drop of 10.15% in egg exports last year compared to the previous year. Data compiled by National Egg Coordination Committee (NECC) showed the region exported 10,986 lakh eggs in 2008-09 against 12,228 lakh eggs in the previous year.
The region, which accounts for 90% of the total egg exports from the country, is said to have suffered due to the ban on imports in the Middle East. It was imposed though there were no reported cases of Avian Influenza outbreak in Namakkal zone. "We are thousands of kilometers away from Tripura, the place where the flu out break started and still we are not able to export to Middle East countries because the whole country is treated as one zone," said Mr K S Ponnuswamy, proprietor of KSP Feeds, Namakkal.
Since February 2006, when the first outbreak of Avian Influenza
was reported in India, the country has been facing a downturn in exports. But, it also paved way to explore other potential countries for export of eggs and Afghanistan turned out to be one.
In 2007-08, when the ban was lifted for the whole year exports to Afghanistan and Africa almost doubled . However, last year was the worst affected with the ban lifted for only few days during November 2008.
"After the country declared itself to be bird flu free on November 4, 2008, an outbreak was reported on November 11, 2008 and therefore the Middle East ban was more or less present throughout the year," said Mr VKS Sivakumar, MD, VKS Exports. His company holds a 70% market share in egg exports from India.
Namakkal zone was regularly shipping 30 lakh eggs to Gulf Countries everyday before the ban. "With newer markets, we could have grown three-fold in egg exports," said Mr P Valsan, secretary of All India Poultry Products Exporters Association.
"But to achieve that our government should take proper steps by bringing the whole industry under single window system and establish a Poultry Development Board," he added.
Dr A T Venugopal, who is a technical consultant for poultry farmers in India, told ET that the state government should implement a Notifiable Avian Influenza (NAI) free establishment within Highly Pathogenic Notifiable Avian Influenza (HPNA) free compartment as per terrestial Animal Health Code of OIE, 2008.