Costs Rise, Selling Prices Fall: Poultry Farmers Cornered by a Weaker Rupiah

Writer: KOMPAS.com - Chairman of the Indonesian Independent Poultry Farmers Association (Pemindo), Kusnan, says that poultry farmers are currently under pressure due to an imbalance between production costs and selling prices. He explains that rising input costs such as feed and breeding stock push up the cost of production (HPP) for smallholders. On the other hand, the selling prices of chicken and eggs have fallen and cannot keep pace with rising production costs. ‘In the poultry sector, both layer and broiler chickens, increases in input prices such as feed and breeding stock push up the HPP. But selling prices are depressed and cannot surpass the HPP,’ Kusnan said on Tuesday (19/5/2026), quoted from Youtube Obrolan Newsroom Kompas.com. Meanwhile, farm-gate egg prices are also under pressure. According to Pemindo members in Solo, egg prices are only around Rp 20,000 to Rp 21,000 per kilogram, well below the cost of production. ‘This is well below HPP,’ he said. He notes that this indicates poultry farmers are facing a double squeeze, with rising production costs on one side and falling selling prices on the other. However, the increase in costs has not been matched by higher prices for farm products in the market, squeezing farmers’ margins further. He assesses that this condition makes the livelihoods of small-scale farming increasingly hard to survive amid fluctuations in production costs. He says the government actually has several programmes that could act as absorption channels, including the Free Nutritious Meals programme (MBG). ‘When prices fall, the hope is that farmers’ products can be absorbed or purchased by the government. Farmers are not asking for more, just absorption so that stocks decrease and prices can stabilise,’ he said.