"Economy": Raising the prices of egg and poultry products temporarily to ensure a balanced relationship between the trader and the consumer

The Ministry of Economy clarified that the approval to raise the prices of egg and poultry products by a maximum of 13%, which was made pursuant to Ministerial Resolution No. 41 of 2023 issued on March 6, 2023, comes within the framework of the keenness of the Ministry and its partners to ensure a balanced relationship between the trader and the consumer, and to maintain food security in all markets of the country, in line with the provisions of Federal Law No. 15 of 2020 regarding consumer protection, and related laws and decisions, noting that this increase is temporary. The need for its continued application will be assessed within 6 months from now, and if there are no reasons for it in light of the developments in the local, regional and global markets, it will be canceled or amended.

According to the ministry, this step was taken against the backdrop of a request submitted by a number of companies working in this field in the country to the Ministry of Economy to raise prices against the background of incurring large losses during the last period due to high production costs and production inputs of imported materials of feed and other materials and the rise in international shipping costs at varying rates that reached record levels.

The Ministry explains that it carried out an analytical study to verify the application in cooperation with a specialized advisory team on the cost of egg and chicken products, which concluded that the justified increase ranges between 13 and 20%, and the results of the study were submitted to the Supreme Committee for Consumer Protection - which includes in its membership all concerned authorities at the federal and local levels as well as experienced members - where the committee recommended approving the increase by a maximum of 13%.

The Ministry explains that this increase will contribute to protecting poultry and egg companies and farms from the negative effects of the high costs of producing these products and mitigating their impact, thus helping to sustain the business of these companies and ensure their ability to provide egg and poultry products in the UAE markets at stable and reasonable prices, and in the required quantities that meet all the needs of consumers in all emirates of the country without a decrease in supply or interruption in the supply chains of these products in the country.

The Ministry indicates that the 13% rate is a simple and justified percentage and is in line with the high prices of these products regionally and globally, and that it is a studied percentage in light of the high prices of raw materials and the requirements for egg and poultry production, such as feed, fuel and vaccinations, and the high international freight rates, especially from Russian and Ukrainian ports, which are the main global supplier of grain used in the feed industry, as well as the impact of large-scale changes in international markets, especially the increase in the state of inflation, the challenges of global supply chains and the fluctuation of exchange Currencies, rising freight rates and current geopolitical challenges.

The Ministry of Economy confirmed that egg and poultry products are among the commodities whose prices cannot be raised in the markets without prior approval from the ministry, and that the step to raise the prices of these products comes in implementation of the policies in force and in line with the powers and competencies of the ministry and in line with the pricing policy that was recently launched under Cabinet Resolution No. 120 of 2022 regarding the rules and controls for pricing consumer goods in the country.

In conclusion, the Ministry of Economy stresses the importance of awareness that the rise in commodity prices is a global challenge, and that the Ministry is continuously studying any global rises in the prices of major commodities to work in an integrated manner and in accordance with a clear policy to reduce the impact of any uncontrolled rises in the international prices of these commodities on the final products in the country's markets, and to mitigate the impact of these rises to a minimum on consumers, in a way that ensures a balanced relationship between the trader and the consumer.