Espousing the cause of poultry farms, the Tamil Nadu Farmers’ Protection Association has urged the government to convene tripartite talks involving the representatives of poultry farmers’ associations and Broiler Coordination Committee representing poultry companies to arrive at new wage rates for foster care of chickens.
The association has demanded that the rearing rate has to be fixed at a minimum of ₹15 per kg for broiler chicken, and for farm country chicken ₹20 per kg, and ₹5 per bird for quail.
The grievances of the association is that poultry companies have been providing a minimum cultivation amount of ₹6.50 per kg for many years now, despite the steep increase in the costs of electricity and other inputs.
Though the State government had advocated increase the wage rates on a yearly basis based on talks with the poultry farmers’ associations, the directive has not been implemented since 2013, according to the farmers.
The association has insisted that FCR (Feed Conversion Ratio), a metric indicating how efficiently birds convert feed into body weight gain, must be scrapped.
A separate welfare board for poultry farm workers, and companies must ensure six batches of chicks are provided to the farms every year unfailingly for foster care, the association demanded.
Taking exception to the insistence by the companies that the foster farms must source vaccine from particular firms, the association has urged the companies to bear the expenses for medications and eye drops vaccine. Administrative costs must not be included in production cost, the association insisted.
Chickens must not be lesser than 40 grams, and certified feed must be provided, said M. Mahalingam, State Coordinator of the association’s poultry farmers’ wing.
Rather than forcing farmers to source feed from other farms, the companies must take back the feed and return the same with enriched nutritional value.
Most of the poultry farmers are unable to pay even the interest on their bank loans, Mr. Mahalingam said, calling upon the companies to bear the expenses towards coir pith, charcoal, and other inputs.
Towards mobilising the collective support of poultry farmer associations to these demands, the association has scheduled the first consultative meeting of poultry farmers at Batlagundu in Dindigul district on July 15.
Published – July 10, 2025 09:04 pm IST
