ALAPPUZHA: The loss of beef trade is the gain of duck business. The legal and other hurdles in cattle trade and the consequent rise in prices of beef and its shortage have boosted the sale of ducks even as the dispute between the government and poultry farmers remains unsolved. The price of duck meat has touched Rs 300 per kilo through it is off-season in Kuttanad. The duck farmers are depending upon Tamil Nadu for matured ducks as rearing of birds in Kuttanad will pick up only during the harvesting season that begin in September.
Jojo Thundiyil, a duck shop owner at Mankombu, said the customers come mainly from Changanassery, Kottayam, Thiruvalla and Pala.
However, there is shortage of ducks. When bird flu struck in October last year, over 7.5 lakh ducks were culled in Kuttanad and surrounding areas. Usually, 5 lakh ducks are reared for every Christmas- New Year business. The government had disbursed '12-crore compensation to 138 farmers duck farmers in Kottayam and Alappuzha districts. J. Raju, another meat seller at Mankombu, said that the GST had not affected them as duck farming was tax-free. Though it was seasonal business earlier, the scenario has changed now.
“The price may come down next month since it is off season in Tamil Nadu,” he said. Samuel Pallipad, secretary, All-Kerala Joint Duck Farmers’ Society, said the trade had improved after the bird flu outbreak. “Christmas – New Year is the most important season of duck farmers when business worth Rs 10 crore takes place,” he added. Tamil Nadu lobbies along with a section of domestic suppliers have created a monopoly in the business and they control the price. The suppliers, according to K. Thankachan, a local duck farmer, bring aged ducks from Tamil Nadu to Kuttanad and sell them under the label of Kuttanad ducks. “The fluctuations in Tamil Nadu industry have started reflecting in Kuttanad as well,” he said.
