Farms sell 70% of sacrificial animals ahead of Eid

Eid-ul-Azha is still more than a week away, but about 60 to 70 per cent of animals on big farms have already been sold.

According to entrepreneurs, some buyers visit farms every year to buy animals of their choice. They buy animals and leave them on the farms to get them later. At times, some new buyers also come with old buyers.

This year, prices have increased by Tk 20,000 to 30,000 per cow. However, the number of buyers buying from farms has not decreased, but rather increased, entrepreneurs said.

They also said most of those who buy big and multiple animals come to farms as they do not want to face the hassle of going to cattle markets. Moreover, some do not trust sellers at the markets. So they come to well-known farms.

While visiting Nabil Agro in Rupganj near Dhaka last week, most of the cows were seen having “sold out” written on them. An employee named Anik was showing an animal to some potential buyers. When they wanted to know about a bull of the Brahman breed standing beside the animal, he said it had already been sold a year ago.

The farm has about 200 sacrificial animals, and almost all of them are large. When asked, Rajib Ahmed, director of the farm, told The Business Post that the prices of animals had gone up by 20 to 30 per cent this year compared to last year due to the rise in feed prices.

“We have sold about 150 animals so far. Most people do not want to take the trouble of buying animals from the market. So they buy from farms beforehand. However, they take the animals home the day before Eid. Many have bought animals almost a year ago and left them on our farm,” he added.

According to Bangladesh Dairy Farmers’ Association (BDFA), there are 10 to 12 lakh small and big farms in the country. Each of them keeps at least five animals.

However, all of them are not involved in animal fattening. Many run dairy farms.

Some fatten animals for meat besides running dairy operations.

As per the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock, 1.21 crore cattle are ready to be sacrificed this year in the country. Most of these animals have been reared on 78,522 farms in the country.

According to the Department of Livestock, the number of registered farms in the country that fatten cows is 85,000. These registered farms raise at least two animals.

Labib Group’s farm Alamgir Ranch has set a target of selling 1,200 animals this Eid, according to its officials. Of these, 250 are on the farm in Mohammadpur’s Basila.

Al-Amin, a salesman, told The Business Post that 70 to 80 per cent of their animals had already been sold.

“Most of these have been sold directly. Some were sold online. Bulls sold for Tk 1.5 lakh last year are now priced at Tk 1.6-1.7 lakh,” he said.

Although farms are selling animals at higher prices, marginal farmers and ranchers are uncertain about prices at the cattle markets. They say prices will go down if the number of buyers decreases and the supply of animals increases. In that case, marginal farmers and seasonal traders will suffer the most.

Shahriar Hossain, a marginal farmer in Narayanganj’s Araihazar upazila, told The Business Post, “Raising a local bull for a year costs at least Tk 60,000 to cover bran, grass, labour and other expenses. If I add Tk 75,000 to the cost of raising the bull that I bought 14 months ago, its price now stands at Tk 1.35 lakh without any profit.”

“I am worried about whether I will make a profit by selling cows this year. Many will not buy animals. The supply of animals is also expected to increase,” he added.