Chicken farmers learn from European industry

The trip provided an inside look into the way firms in the chicken industry negotiate to reach a price agreement.

Four leaders from the chicken industry representing farm owners, breeders, feed providers and abattoirs meet every Wednesday in Belgium to reach an agreement on the price at which farms will sell chicken meat to abattoirs for the week.

Steven Vervaeke, Representative of chicken farm owners, Belgium said: The opinions of chicken farm owners matter the most in negotiations. The price must be based on the demand for fresh chicken meat, the cost of breeds and the cost of feed. But the most important factor is the total number of chickens that farms will sell to abattoirs this week in Belgium.

A number of chicken farm owners from Vietnam observed the event, thanks to Kay de Vreese, the Belgian owner of a chicken farm in Bảo Lộc. According to Kay, only when representatives of the majority of chicken farms in Vietnam negotiate with breeds, food for fowl enterprises and abattoir owners can the interests of chicken farmers be secured. He organized the trip to Belgium and the Netherlands to help chicken farm owners from Vietnam learn more about the chicken industry in Belgium, which has more than 50 years of history.

Nguyen Van Ngoc, Vice Chairman of Southeastern Poultry Association said: “In Vietnam, food and breed factories sell their products for money first. When abattoirs run short on meat, they will offer higher prices. Farmers in Vietnam will suffer from losses if the price drops”.

Close cooperation between the four parties not only stabilises the price of chicken in Europe, but also ensures benefits for the chicken farming sector.