South India’s rising demand for mutton triggers crisis in parts of Maharashtra

In Pune as well the prices have risen to Rs600 per kg due to low supply of meat; experts say rates likely to remain high for next five years

Last week saw consumer protests in Maharashtra’s bordering districts such as Kolhapur and Ichalkaranji, besides other places as Raigad district as mutton prices shot from Rs 480 per kg to more than Rs 600 per kg.

While prices of mutton has touched as high as 600 per kg, butchers from the Khatik community also closed their shutters for almost a week on grounds that they could not sell mutton at lower rates due to acute shortfall in supply. (REPRESENTATIVE PHOTO)

In Pune as well the prices have risen to Rs600/kg due to low supply of meat.

While prices touched as high as 600 per kg, butchers from the Khatik community also closed their shutters for almost a week on grounds that they could not sell mutton at lower rates due to acute shortfall in supply.

Vijay Kamble, president, Kolhapur Khatik community said, “They could not purchase the goats at extraordinarily high prices.”

Finally, Kolhapur district collector Daulat Desai set up a 12-member panel on December 2, 2019, to regulate prices of mutton and managed to convince butchers to open their outlets and resume sales with mutton prices at around Rs 540 per kg.

Animal husbandry experts such as Avinash Deo and Sachin Tekade, assistant director of the state government’s Maharastra State Sheep and Goat Development Corporation (also known as Punyashloka Ahilyadevi Maharashtra Mendhi and Sheli Vikas Mahamandal), said, “This crisis was triggered by traders from Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh who paid a higher price for goats reared in Maharashtra and diverted stock to the south.” This crisis is likely to worsen over the next five years, say, experts, adding that Government intervention is needed to increase rearing/stock of goats in Maharashtra.

Tekade also noted that the mutton production in the Maharashtra-Karnataka belt has been disturbed due to floods and heavy rains.

According to Tekade, the demand for mutton has been rising in southern states such as Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamilnadu and Kerala as compared to the northern states.

Deo noted that although the National Commission on Nutrition has stated that a balanced human diet should comprise 11 kg meat/annum, the current availability in Maharashtra is only 2.26 kg/annum (from all species). “Due to increasing human population, the average meat availability is not likely to exceed,” he said. Therefore a rapid increase in meat production is necessary to meet the ever-increasing demand, said Deo.

“It is high time that the government and experts in this field concentrate on this sector. The demand has been increasing by almost five-folds,” he said, adding that demand-supply mismatch was being seen almost every year.

According to him, demand for mutton was going to rise in the future because of rising consumption and higher disposable incomes. The Government must plan for this demand, and encourage farmers to participate in meat production, he said.

“Farmers engaged in goat and sheep rearing must be provided with training, medicine kits, etc,” he said.

Meat production

-Sheep and goat meat production is about 34.52% of total meat production in the state.

-Meat from sheep accounts for 11.34% and from goats, 23.18 %.

- Maharastra State Sheep and Goat Development Corporation