According to data from the Customs Department, in the first 7 months of the year, Vietnam imported nearly 217,400 tons of meat and poultry by-products, of which chicken meat accounted for over 90%. The import structure shows that most of the chicken meat entering Vietnam is frozen, cut into parts before being put on the market.
Talking to Lao Dong Newspaper, Dr. Nguyen Thanh Son - Chairman of the Vietnam Poultry Association said that the current import scale is too large and the growth rate is at a massive level, creating direct oversupply pressure on the domestic market.
On average, Vietnam absorbs more than 31,000 tons of foreign chicken meat each month. This figure accounts for 36.5% of the total amount of imported meat of all kinds of the country, making poultry the most competitive livestock item.
With a growth rate of more than 40% compared to the same period last year, it can be seen that the flow of foreign meat into Vietnam is increasing exponentially, completely despite the fact that the total domestic poultry flock is still growing stably," Dr. Nguyen Thanh Son affirmed.
According to Dr. Nguyen Thanh Son, currently, the production cost of 1 kg of white-bristled chicken in Vietnam ranges from 27,000 - 30,000 VND/kg (depending on the rate of disease loss and fluctuations in raw material prices).
In which, animal feed is 18,900 - 21,000 VND (accounting for 70%); breeding animals (1-day-old chicks) 3,500 - 4,200 VND (accounting for 5%); veterinary medicine and vaccines are 1,350 - 1,500 VND (accounting for 4 - 5%); electricity, water, barn filling are 1,100 - 1,200 VND (accounting for 3 - 4%); direct labor is 800 - 900 VND (accounting for 3%); asset depreciation and other expenses are 1,200 - 1,350 VND (accounting for 4 - 5%).
If compared with countries in the Asian region, the production cost of white chicken in our country is among the most optimal in the region, ranked 2nd/18 countries in terms of production cost reduction capacity (including India 1.05 USD/kg, Vietnam 1.06 USD/kg, Pakistan 1.07 USD/kg... ).
Meanwhile, in Japan it is 2.07 USD/kg, Brunei is 2.20 USD/kg. The production system of large enterprises and corporations in our country has reached the limit of cost efficiency - the space to reduce costs is almost non-existent.
Currently, the price of domestically produced white chickens is common as follows: Whole chickens with hooked jaws (with head, leg, and internal organs removed) have a wholesale price at the slaughterhouse ranging from 38,000 - 45,000 VND/kg.
Retail prices at markets and supermarkets are about 50,000 - 60,000 VND/kg. Chicken breast fillet (without skin, bones) is the most expensive part of domestic white chicken, retail price is about 60,000 - 80,000 VND/kg (because gyms and healthy food chains consume strongly). Fresh chicken thighs have retail prices ranging from 65,000 - 80,000 VND/kg. Fresh chicken wings have retail prices ranging from 70,000 - 85,000 VND/kg.
With the production cost of live chickens of 1.06 USD/kg (27,000 - 30,000 VND/kg), Vietnam is considered to be ranked 2nd/18 Asian countries in terms of cost optimization, completely surpassing developed countries in the region such as Japan (2.07 USD/kg) or Brunei (2.20 USD/kg).
This proves that the management capacity, farming techniques and optimization level of large corporations in Vietnam have reached a very high level in the world.
The fact that the production system has "touched the ceiling" of efficiency (the space to reduce costs is no longer much) means that Vietnamese farmers cannot further reduce costs by conventional technical measures.
Dr. Nguyen Thanh Son said that threats to our country's livestock industry are not Asian countries, but European and American powers (USA, Brazil, Poland). The production cost of live chickens in the US/Brazil is only from 22,000 - 25,000 VND/kg (about 18 - 20% lower than Vietnam). Therefore, no matter how optimal Vietnam is in Asian scale, we will still be out of breath when placed next to world "grain granaries".
Fierce asymmetry in the selling price structure after slaughter. When switching from live chickens to products after slaughter, the price competition gap reveals obvious asymmetry, pushing domestic chickens into a weak position.
In the thigh and chicken wings segment, domestic chickens are absolutely inferior in price. Domestic chickens retailed with corner thighs from 65,000 - 80,000 VND/kg, fresh wings from 70,000 - 85,000 VND/kg. Meanwhile, imported chickens (with a CIF price of only 26,500 VND/kg), when going to the retail market, only have a price of 45,000 - 55,000 VND/kg for thighs and 60,000 - 75,000 VND/kg for wings.
In summary, Vietnam's price competitiveness against imported goods in the white-bristled industrial chicken segment is very low. The domestic livestock industry is having to use the "feast of freshness and consumer taste" to defend against the "cheap weapon" of imported goods," Dr. Nguyen Thanh Son assessed.
Mr. Nguyen Tri Cong - Chairman of Dong Nai Livestock Association, said that the important issue for the domestic livestock industry is to change breeds, farming methods and production organization to reduce costs and improve competitiveness with imported products.
For the domestic livestock industry, we must improve breeds, improve productivity to gradually bring cost prices closer to imported products. Because imports are an issue associated with trade commitments, and what we need to do is improve productivity. When productivity increases, production costs will decrease," Mr. Cong analyzed.
