Smita Patil1, Ph.D. Scholar at Livestock Production Management Department, WBUAFS, Kolkata, (W.B.), INDIA
1 – Corresponding Author – smita.patil9146@gmail.com
1. Introduction:
The COVID-19 effects on the livestock sector are still largely unquantified and yet to be fully felt. Formal assessments have not yet been possible, but current observations reveal disruptions to livestock value chains. Lessons from past epidemics indicate these disruptions are likely to grow, along with their dire, socio-economic consequences. Fortunately, actions can be taken to protect this sector and its activities, services and products upon which the world relies. The animal husbandry industry in India has been largely impacted by the effect of coronavirus. A big sharp fall in the demand for chicken and meat has been recorded, since the outbreak as there have been various rumors amongst the peoples that the virus can spread through the animal’s meat and chicken. However, the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention declared that coronavirus is known to be transmitted via direct contacts to humans, and not via livestock or aqua animals. Government organizations have set guidelines in order to prevent the pandemic. The primary factors that were responsible for the livestock sector growth before the pandemic were the increased consumption of meat, beef, chicken and other kinds of seafood such as prawns globally. Peoples lifestyles changing along with the preferences towards the luxury food items were also the prime factors for the market growth before the pandemic.
• Government announcing several relief packages in order to reduce the impact of coronavirus in the livestock sector as well as the rumors with it. For instance, in India, the government has set up the COVID-19 Economic Response Task Force to assess the impact of COVID-19 in the various sectors including animal husbandry. Thus, to dispel the rumors that COVID-19 spreads by consumption of chicken, the Poultry Farm Association of India also organized a Chicken Fair in Uttar Pradesh state.
2. Supply chain disruptions and impact on feed production have affected the feed market.
• The poultry industry is battling rumors of coronavirus spreading through the consumption of meat and meat products. In some regions, lockdowns have been announced to control the coronavirus pandemic, which has been impacting the movement of vehicles carrying livestock, feed, and feed ingredients. On the other hand, raw material price volatility is a major challenge faced by feed manufacturers worldwide during COVID-19.
• Livestock production sector is segmented by type into dairy, meat, poultry, aquaculture, and others (insects). Meat and poultry are expected to get affected significantly due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to the increased rate of virus spread the regional demand for chicken and meat is decreased. Further, it has also been witnessed that the peoples are opting for the jackfruit as the replacement of chicken and mutton. Market growth has also affected due to the shutdowns of the food chain services including restaurants.
3. Shutdowns are leading to a loss in demand for meat, dairy, and animal products impacting the feed market.
• Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the demand for basic food or essentials has been on the rise. Despite the strong demand for meat, dairy, and aquaculture products amidst the coronavirus pandemic, the supply chain has witnessed a host of disruptions, which are stopping producers from providing their products in the market. For instance, disruptions in the supply chains are causing wastage of fresh produce in the US, even though there are a high demand and food shortage for dairy produce.
• The global export for beef and chicken meat trade has been reduced due to the emerging threats from the spread of COVID-19 pandemic. Furthermore, the economic growth in 2020 and the impact on consumers of the pandemic will dampen the demand for animal protein, subsequently affecting the feed market.
4. Impact on Animal Production:
• Access to animal feeds reduced:
Physical distancing and requirements for additional personal protective equipment are reducing the efficiency of industrial feed enterprises. Movement restrictions and illness are resulting in labour shortages and reduced supply of raw materials or other ingredients. Disruption of supply routes has further delayed feed supply.
• Reduced access to inputs and services:
Movement restrictions and disruption of national and international trade routes is curbing farmer access to breeding materials and replacement stocks (e.g. day-old chicks and semen). This can compromise sales for input providers. The disruption of public services (e.g. food safety inspection and animal health extension services), combined with interrupted delivery and use of vaccines and medicines is increasing the likelihood of new epidemics, including those involving animal diseases that cause major livestock losses (e.g. African swine fever in East and Southeast Asia) and outbreaks of diseases transmissible to humans. Import restrictions will have greater impact on areas which depend on imports to sustain production or rely on meat and dairy imports for consumption (e.g. large parts of Africa and small island developing states).
• Reduced access to markets:
Closure of live animal markets in many countries means small-scale producers cannot sell their goods. The disruption of the logistical channel and drop in demand are reducing sales and lowering prices. For example, American pig prices dropped by roughly 27 percent in just over a week. As a result of limited access to markets and slaughterhouses/processing plants, farmers are having to keep their stock longer or dump milk, leaving them with higher production costs or important losses. Disruptions of income from small ruminants or poultry are hitting women hardest, by reducing their purchases of household essentials and nutrition. Movement restrictions are also interrupting the role of intermediaries, who collect animals or products and aggregate them for further fattening, processing or retailing. As previous epidemic experiences show, disruptions of intermediaries can cause farmers to lose their link to larger buyers, especially without information systems linking value chain actors.
5. Processing:
• Reduced processing capacity: Staff reductions due to lockdown measures are constraining meat and dairy processing industries, given their labour-intensive nature.
• Compromised storage and conservation: Transport disruptions and changes in retailing and consumption habits are forcing some collectors and processors to stock up.
• Constrained informal businesses: Much of meat and dairy processing in developing countries is informal (i.e. up to 90 percent of volume). COVID-19 prevention and response disrupts these businesses. This disruption removes an outlet for small-scale producers, who often lack the capacity to sell to formal markets.
6. Transport:
• Constrained national transport: Movement restrictions are compromising transport, which is reducing the supply of livestock and livestock products.
• Constrained international transport: Trade restrictions impact countries exporting livestock products as well as farmers whose incomes depend on exports. Livestock producers, traders and butchers lost their incomes since they could not export their animals and meat. Disruptions to live animal transport can also have serious consequences on the availability of products in the importing country.
7. Sales and consumption
Modified retailing and product demand:
Retailing is reorienting toward supermarkets and online platforms, which are now spiking. In China, leading e-commerce food delivery platforms increased their volumes by 400 percent in February 2020, while their pre-crisis share of fresh food consumption was only 3 percent. This means more packaged, longer-life and processed meat and dairy products being shipped. While some farmers in Europe and North America seem to be able to create alternative and direct channels with consumers, in countries with a low penetration of e-commerce, processing industries or supermarkets, farmers cannot sell their produce. In Viet Nam, informal markets and food vendors are under higher scrutiny, and supermarkets are selling more processed meat. The United Arab Emirates has closed all fish, meat and vegetable markets, but it has kept supermarkets open 24 hours a day at 30 percent maximum visitor capacity.
• Reduced consumer purchasing power:
Quarantine and lockdowns are constraining purchasing power, particularly that of informal workers, and in countries with little or no social safety nets. The economic slowdown and increasing unemployment have already left people, including millions of migrant workers in India, with little or no income with which to buy food.
• Reduced demand and public procurement: Due to closure of restaurants and reduced tourism is leading to a sharp fall in demand for food by these sectors. School feeding programs are also suspended, which is depriving millions of children of access to food. Fake news and rumours can also affect demand. In India, chicken sales were reduced significantly after posts on social media created the impression that humans could contract COVID-19 by consuming chicken.
8. Measures to be taken:
1. Provide guidelines for COVID-19 control and prevention along the supply chains to protect value chain actors and their families. These guidelines should include provisions for biosecurity, personal protective equipment and hygiene.
2. Provide grants to increase packaging and freezing capacities. Small- and medium-sized enterprises and factories should be encouraged to produce safe products with long shelf lives.
3. Organize grouped slaughtering points and support the installation of the cold chain to reduce unregulated slaughtering and improve meat inspection.
4. Find alternative ways to reach children of the school feeding programmes and distribute animal-protein-rich foods to improve nutrition and smallholder incomes.
5. Promote group collection and delivery of milk to processing companies. Financial measures
6. Provide cash transfers to milk collection centres and factories to increase purchasing power for milk supply and processing long-shelf products (e.g. UHT, powdered milk).
7. Help small- and medium-sized businesses mitigate short-term COVID-19 impacts via dedicated financial facilities (e.g. temporary tax relief, dedicated emergency loan programmes, direct stimulus payments, tax exemptions, extensions for overdue loan repayments, grace periods, low interest rates and direct public investments and subsidies.
8. Provide training or mentoring programmes to help small- and medium-sized enterprises assess and manage the financial impact of the crisis, go digital and find new markets.
9. Provide subsidies to agri-food sectors that maintain activities during lockdown; implement price controls to reduce inflation on livestock commodities.
