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Bird flu hits Asia`s feed trade, mills cut output
Singapore, jan 27: Asian nations reeling under an outbreak of the bird flu disease are bracing for a sharp drop in commercial feed demand following a lack of orders from the poultry sector, forcing feed makers to restrict production.
Singapore, jan 27: Asian nations reeling under an outbreak of the bird flu disease are bracing for a sharp drop in commercial feed demand following a lack of orders from the poultry sector, forcing feed makers to restrict production.
As governments in Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Japan, South Korea, Cambodia, Pakistan, Taiwan and Laos battle to contain the spread of the virus, the feed trade is fearing the worst.
"We are hearing a new country reporting bird flu everyday. Surely, the impact on the feed business is going to be bigger than what we initially thought," said one grains trade official.
Regional grain traders said feed makers in countries such as Thailand, one of Asia's leading poultry exporters, and Indonesia, were asking suppliers to hold back shipments. In Vietnam, feed ingredient buyers were shying away from placing fresh orders.
The spread of the virus, which has killed six people in Vietnam and two in Thailand, came as Asia's feed trade is also struggling with high ingredient prices in the absence of Chinese offers and surging freight rates.
"It's a kind of triple whammy for the feed industry out here," Kimberly Rameker, regional director for Southeast Asia of the U.S. Grains Council, told Reuters from Kuala Lumpur.
"I would not be surprised if I see a 20 percent drop in commercial feed demand in Southeast Asia. All kinds of numbers ranging from 15 percent to 40 percent are circulating." Bureau Report
"We are hearing a new country reporting bird flu everyday. Surely, the impact on the feed business is going to be bigger than what we initially thought," said one grains trade official.
Regional grain traders said feed makers in countries such as Thailand, one of Asia's leading poultry exporters, and Indonesia, were asking suppliers to hold back shipments. In Vietnam, feed ingredient buyers were shying away from placing fresh orders.
The spread of the virus, which has killed six people in Vietnam and two in Thailand, came as Asia's feed trade is also struggling with high ingredient prices in the absence of Chinese offers and surging freight rates.
"It's a kind of triple whammy for the feed industry out here," Kimberly Rameker, regional director for Southeast Asia of the U.S. Grains Council, told Reuters from Kuala Lumpur.
"I would not be surprised if I see a 20 percent drop in commercial feed demand in Southeast Asia. All kinds of numbers ranging from 15 percent to 40 percent are circulating." Bureau Report