World | India
Disease kills Indian appetite for chicken
Pieces of crisp roast chicken lie invitingly in a glass case at Sadiq Sunesra's half-century-old Mumbai restaurant, but no one among the dozens walking in are tempted to buy.
- Reuters
- Published: 23:32 May 3, 2009
Mumbai: Pieces of crisp roast chicken lie invitingly in a glass case at Sadiq Sunesra's half-century-old Mumbai restaurant, but no one among the dozens walking in are tempted to buy.
It has been more than two weeks since India's first outbreak of the H5N1 bird flu virus was confirmed in the western state of Maharashtra, where thousands of chickens died.
No humans have been reported infected in India and mass culling of poultry in the affected area helped end the outbreak. But for many Indians, the scare is far from over and chicken remains decidedly off the menu.
"Just now a customer called to order a dozen dishes of chicken biryani [chicken and rice], but changed the order on a second thought," Sunesra said. "I told her to read the newspaper, which says chicken is safe to eat. But it was useless."
Sales of chicken dishes at his restaurant, New Riyaaz, have crashed to less than a third of normal levels, reflecting the havoc faced across the industry.
Chicken is a staple for meat-eaters in India, where beef and pork are largely not eaten for either religious reasons or worries about quality.
Nearly half a million chickens have been killed and about 1.3 million eggs destroyed to prevent the spread of the disease in Maharashtra, of which Mumbai is the capital. Health officials also tested thousands of people and fumigated the town at the centre of the outbreak.
The Indian government says there have been no more cases of the H5N1 virus in birds. Poultry industry officials say an advertisement campaign about the safety of cooked chicken for human consumption has brought around some of the panicked customers.
"Some sales movement has started. We have been able to restore chicken in the army canteens," said Bharat Tandon, chairman of the Compound Livestock Feed Manufacturers' Association of India. "But things are still pretty bad in the marketplace."
Sales of chicken across India dropped to between 20 and 30 per cent of normal levels in the first week after the outbreak.
"Volumes are still down by 40 to 50 per cent," said Shashi Kapur, president of the Poultry Federation of India. "Many restaurants, hospitals and clubs are still not putting back chicken on their menu yet."
Chicken prices have halved to between Rs20 and Rs23 (Dh2) per bird, but industry officials draw solace from their recovery from the Rs15-level seen shortly after the outbreak. "Prices are rising, but I think the message still has to go across that chicken and eggs are safe," Kapur said.
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