Govt greenlights 190m egg imports to control mkt

Staff Reporter :

The government has approved the import of an additional 190 million eggs to stabilise the market and reduce prices. The Ministry of Commerce has authorized 42 companies to import 188 million eggs, with the aim of increasing supply. The decision was announced on Tuesday through a notification from the Ministry’s Internal Trade-1 branch.

This comes after two rounds of approvals in October, where 19 companies were granted permission to import 85 million eggs.

These import permits will remain valid until December 31, 2024. The country’s daily demand for eggs is estimated at approximately 50 million eggs.

The government has set several conditions for egg imports. Eggs must come from countries free of avian influenza (bird flu), and exporters must provide a certificate from the relevant authorities confirming that the eggs are free of bird flu viruses and harmful bacteria.

Additionally, authorities must be notified 15 days before each shipment, and progress reports must be submitted to the Ministry of Commerce every seven days.
Recently, the price of eggs surged to nearly Tk200 per dozen due to a supply shortage, with prices reaching up to Tk190.
However, following the import authorization, egg prices have started to decrease. According to the Trading Corporation of Bangladesh (TCB), eggs are now being sold at Tk144 to Tk150 per dozen in Dhaka markets.
The Department of Agricultural Marketing has also set a “fair price” for eggs. The price for each egg is set at Tk10.58 at the production level, Tk11.01 at the wholesale level, and Tk11.87 at the retail level, with the price per dozen fixed at Tk142.44.
In response to the sharp price increase, the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission recommended temporarily waiving duties on egg imports.
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) followed suit, announcing a reduction in the import tariff from 25% to 5%. This duty exemption will remain in effect until December 15, 2024.