Meat prices have seen a 20 percent increase in the last 20 days

The temporary suspension of live and carcass meat imports from abroad by the Meat and Milk Board in Turkey has caused meat prices in the domestic market to rise rapidly. According to the National Meat Council's December 14 price list, beef and lamb prices have shown an increase of up to 20 percent in the last 20 days. While prices at butcher counters are worrying consumers, industry representatives have warned that producers in the domestic market could face difficult situations in the long term.

These sudden price hikes have led to an increase in meat prices per kilogram at butcher counters. Beef slaughter prices at abattoirs have risen by 20 liras, while lamb slaughter prices have increased by 15 liras. Price hikes in staple meat products such as ground meat and cubed meat are straining consumer budgets.

Livestock producers point out that the number of animals in the domestic market is decreasing day by day despite government subsidies. Stating that while imports are an immediate solution, they negatively affect the sector in the long term, farmers are concerned that policies implemented to lower inflation do not provide producers with the prices they deserve and initiate a long, troubled process.

With the decrease in the amount of mutton on counters, it is observed that there has been a decline of approximately 1.5 million head in the small ruminant population over the last year. The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry expects the supply-demand balance in the meat market to be restored starting in February, anticipating that the feeder cattle imported this year will enter the slaughter process by then.

The Competition Authority's investigation into price increases in the meat market continues. The authority, which is researching the transportation process of products from the producer to markets or butchers, is trying to identify the structural problems behind the price increases in the market. President Birol Küle stated that there are structural problems at the root of the price increases in the sector and expressed that they are examining market dynamics in detail. He also added that most of the approximately 200 thousand businesses engaged in cattle and small ruminant farming are small-scale family businesses and are not the party that determines the price.