Shafaq News- Al-Sulaymaniyah
Residents of Al-Sulaymaniyah said prices for red meat and locally produced chicken have risen sharply in recent days, adding to household costs at a time when public-sector salaries in the Kurdistan Region have been delayed.
Before the economic crisis, families used to buy between five and seven kilograms of meat each month, but now many cannot afford even one kilogram because of the steep price increases, resident Sirwan Ahmed said, urging the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) to intervene and curb rising prices.
Aso Omar, spokesperson for Al-Sulaymaniyah's butchers' market, stated that beef, lamb, and goat meat currently sell for between 22,000 and 26,000 Iraqi dinars ($17-$20) per kilogram, attributing the increase to a decline in livestock supplies rather than higher profit margins for traders.
Most livestock enters through a limited number of border crossings with Iran, where importers face high fees and levies, Omar said, adding that a significant share of the livestock is shipped to Iraq's central and southern provinces, reducing supplies in Al-Sulaymaniyah and driving up local prices.
“No official pricing mechanism exists because wholesale purchase prices fluctuate,” Omar noted, but said butchers are operating with narrower profit margins than in previous years.
He called on authorities to facilitate livestock imports and limit the transfer of animals to other provinces to help stabilize prices.
The price of locally produced chicken has also increased, with one kilogram rising from about 2,500 Iraqi dinars to 4,250 dinars ( $1.91 to $3.25) in a short period.
Nazim Abdullah, representative of hatcheries and poultry producers in Al-Sulaymaniyah, said animal feed prices climbed from 600,000 Iraqi dinars (about $458) to 825,000 dinars (about $630) per ton following the US-Iran war, noting that feed accounts for about 70% of poultry production costs. Abdullah argued that the increase is not justified by the cost of raw materials, accusing some feed manufacturers of raising prices without adequate oversight, a move that has directly affected chicken prices.
He added that higher fuel prices in the Kurdistan Region have further increased production and transportation costs, forcing producers to raise prices, although he expects the increase to be temporary.
“Poultry producers exporting to Iraq's central and southern provinces face costly fees and administrative procedures for transport trucks, increasing financial pressure on the sector.”
He urged the Iraqi government to address these obstacles, saying food security should be treated as a nationwide issue encompassing both the Kurdistan Region and the rest of Iraq to ensure the smooth movement of food products and stable prices across the country.