Animal cost deepens crisis for Tunisian families

Only a few hours separated Tunisians from Eid al-Adha, which comes this year with a big rise in prices, forcing many heads of families to delay their purchases to the last two days before the feast, holding out on the hope that the prices could fall, after it saw a rise that merchants and peasants justified by the increase of the prices of feed material and the additional costs. Asaad al-Obeidi, who is assigned by the Minister of Commerce, said to 'Arabstoday': "We coordinate with the Ministry of Agriculture, the Common Vocational Compound for Red Meat, the Consumer Protection Organisation, and the National Institute for Consumption to set the selling prices for the meat in the Feast, so as basic prices was set to be between $3.5 per kilogram live, for the sheep weighing than 40 kgs, and $4.5  for those that weigh between 41 to 65 kgs". He noted that: "The prices are almost similar to the prices of last year, as the prices for all the weights did not rise by more than $0.1 per kilogram." Obeidi added: "The Ministry has provided 970,000 sheep to meet the needs of the internal market, as they exceed the quantities available in the last year estimated at 913,000 and the Meat Company provided 10,000 compared to 9600 in the past year, in selling points of the common vocational compound of meat and dairy, as 500 tons of frozen beef, and 100 tons of imported meat were supplied. But the citizens' opinion is totally different, to what the ministry said, whereas the majority is complaining about the increase in prices, not only in sacrifices, which saw an increase by at least $ 40 for the sheep from the last year, but the same as that seen in all consumer goods, especially agricultural ones. A kilogram of tomatoes has reached $ 1.15, and potatoes are at about $0.85, and red meat exceeds $12 per kg. The index of prices during the month of September increased by 0.6 per cent, while it increased by only 0.3 per cent in the same period of 2010, and inflation rose 3.3 per cent, compared to 4.6 per cent in 2010, and is expected to reach a rate of 3.4 per cent by the end of 2011. Natural factors are the main defendant in the high prices of sacrificial animals, which range between $170-350, for the sheep that weigh between 12-25 kg, a size favored by most Tunisian families. A survey by the National Institute of Consumption had proved that 55 per cent of them are forced to go into debt or borrowing in order to be able to buy "'Allush" (a word for sheep known among the Tunisian families). The rise in prices is also attributed to the absence of economic supervision, and the intervention of intermediaries between the producer and consumer, to raise prices without control. The only victim is the consumer, who does not have any advocate except for "The Consumer Protection Organisation", which issued a statement calling for the consumer to seek acquisition of the animal at a better price from any point of sale to the available animal, provided that he effectively uses his right to choose and compare prices, taking into account the budget of the family in all cases and seek to avoid the of excessive borrowing. Tunisian families prefer to buy "'Allush" on the last day before Eid (the day of Arafah), relying on the possibility of the price index falling. The Directorate of Internal Trade has recorded a decline in the prices of sheep, during the past two days, ranging between 30-40 dollars. Director of Internal Trade, Ahmed Mathlouthi, said: "The decline curve was recorded since Thursday, for about $40" and stressed, during a press conference, held Friday evening, that "the prices of sacrificial animals saw at the beginning of the week a significant increase, while the demand for purchase declined significantly". Mathlouthi announced that a selling point was opened, on Wednesday, for the sale of sacrificial animals at the Meat Company; the first day at this point saw 1400 sheep sold. Also many selling points were opened in the big trade spaces for the sale of sheep, ranging between $200-260. He clarified that "the ministry took the initiative to open the point of sale at the Meat Company ascertained that the demand will rise significantly in the last three days before the feast, especially in Greater Tunis. " After all, the Tunisian find himself got caught between a rock and a hard place, between the duty to buy meat and the limited budget on the one hand, and the prices determined by the Ministry of Commerce and Tourism, and market prices on the other.