Poultry industry ‘in trouble’

The local poultry industry faces a number of serious threats and wants more protection, the president of the Barbados Egg and Poultry Producers Association (BEPPA), Andrew Gill, said yesterday.
He told the SUNDAY SUN that the low rates for importation of semi-processed poultry and poultry parts and the lack of legislation governing exports were among two major concerns facing the association.
An increase in the tariff on imported semi-processed poultry is one of its key recommendations.
“Presently we have the challenge with the importation of semi-processed poultry products such as breaded chicken where the tariff is only 20 per cent. We are presently seeking to get that increased to 184 per cent which would help protect the local poultry industry,” Gill said. (CA)