Under the title "Lebanon: A Threat to Millions of Poultry if Diesel Fuel is Not Available," Sky News Arabia published a report on poultry farmers raising alarms about the depletion of diesel reserves used to ensure continuous power supply for their farms, which threatens the lives of tens of millions of chickens raised for meat or egg production during hot summer conditions that could result in a major disaster for this sector. With the enormous rise in red meat prices, the public has no other reasonably priced source of protein from chicken meat or fresh eggs.
William Botros, president of the Lebanese Poultry Syndicate, told Sky News Arabia that all diesel warehouses have stopped delivering to the poultry sector, electricity is cut off for long hours, and the reserves are nearly depleted in most poultry farms across Lebanon. Botros revealed that there are about 2,000 farms distributed across Lebanese regions from Akkar in northern Lebanon to the south and Beqaa, producing chicken meat and eggs. They need to operate ventilation and cooling systems as well as produce feed for the chickens, but factories have stopped due to the loss of diesel, and there is a risk of spoilage in the stock of chicken meat in refrigerators of poultry meat manufacturers, which contains hundreds of tons, leading to severe losses for those working in this sector.
Botros stated that Lebanon produces approximately 100 million chickens annually and can permanently provide 20 million chickens for local consumption and export. He emphasized the urgent need for securing diesel, calling on customs management and the energy minister to release the diesel, expressing no issues with pricing this vital material at the new rate, and that a quick provision could prevent a catastrophe in this productive sector.
In an interview with one of the poultry farm owners in the Ras Al-Matn area in Mount Lebanon, Hassan Ghazal told Sky News Arabia, "The poultry farming sector is in imminent danger; if diesel fuel is not provided within two days, millions of birds may perish from heat and hunger, as we raise chickens under fully closed farm systems that comply with European quality standards, requiring continuous ventilation." Ghazal added, "The feed production used for chicken needs continuous electrical power 24 hours a day; we have been promised a solution by the energy minister, but time is running out."
Ghazal anticipated that providing diesel will come at several times the current price, which will inevitably reflect on the price of chicken meat for the Lebanese consumer, who still relies on chicken meat and eggs as a primary source of protein given the outrageous rise in beef prices exceeding 120,000 lira per kilogram. He concluded by saying, "Some may resort to frozen and imported chicken meat, which will worsen the situation for local chicken farmers even further." Sky News Arabia learned that the energy minister has decided to provide diesel fuel in the coming hours, which could spare this sector from an impending disaster if the material becomes available.
