Feature: Egyptians forgo purchasing sacrificial animals for Eid due to prices hikes

At one of Cairo's livestock markets, merchants display their animals ahead of the Muslim sacrificial feast of Eid al-Adha on Thursday.

"The price increase of animals and meat is why people are not buying," Reda Mohammed, a livestock trader, told Xinhua as he sat next to his home-bred sheep.

Eid al-Adha, the feast of sacrifice, is celebrated by Muslims worldwide in memory of Prophet Abraham's near-sacrifice of his own son as ordered by God.

Mohammed said there is a sharp rise in prices of all animal breeds in Egypt compared with last year.

"This may be the worst season," he complained. "We are not responsible for rising prices since red meat prices have risen across the world."

He explained that most of the livestock fodder is imported at high prices, whose prices have recently increased.

"That's why we had to increase cattle prices to cover the cost of feeding them," he said.

Egypt's economy has been struggling the past four years due to political turmoil and instability resulting from two uprisings which toppled two heads of state.

According to Egypt's Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS), Egypt operates cattle feed production factories in 150 plants in 2013, with actual production of 1.1 million tonnes, whereas total capacity stands at 4.4 million tonnes, meaning a 74.8 percent unused capacity exists.

Average domestic red meat prices in Egypt increased by 298.2 percent in the last 13 years, from 17 Egyptian pounds per kilo in 2000 to 67.7 in 2013, according to CAPMAS.

In 2015, the price per kilo increased to 85 Egyptian pounds on average (11 U.S. dollars).

Mohammed, a trader, said one kilo of live sheep costs 40 to 41 Egyptian pounds this season.

"Last year's average was 35 to 36 Egyptian pounds per kilo," he said. "This has negatively affected the business and may ruin it."

Unlike Mohammed, livestock seller Rabie Hamid sold all his cows and sheep days before the feast.

Despite the market recession, Hamid sold his 320 animals right after deciding to reduce his prices.

"I admit the market is not in good shape at all, however I did not lose," he said.

He pointed out that he sells one kilo of live calf meat for 32 Egyptian pounds, while his peers sell it for 37 Egyptian pounds.

"This is my strategy, sell more, earn less," said the smiling old man.

Hamid said there is high demand for his animals as they are raised in pastures in Upper Egypt and eat grass.

"My calves are much better than the imported ones. That is why people prefer my animals," he explained.

According to CAPMAS, Egypt's self-sufficiency ratio of red meat decreased from 75.4 percent in 2000 to 74.3 percent in 2013.

Shoppers buying meat for the feast were disappointed by the price hikes.

"I thought I may be able to buy a sacrificial animal this feast, but prices are crazy," said Ahmed Gamal, an Egyptian accountant in a local company.

The 35-year-old father of two said he saved up 1,300 Egyptian pounds to buy a lamb or a sheep, but he discovered it was not enough to buy any livestock breed.

In an attempt to solve the problem of buying an animal to sacrifice and enable more Muslims to follow the sacrificial ritual, the Egyptian government launched a program where consumers may purchase sacrificial animals on installments through local banks and state-run food supply authorities.

Media reports revealed that a number of people chose this program as they prefer to buy sacrificial animals in cash for religious reasons.

"I do not think it is a good idea to buy kilos of red meat from butchers since I cannot afford to buy a sacrificial animal," he said helplessly. Enditem