‘If no solution is found, we will block the streets with egg crates’: what is happening in the egg market

In recent days, the price of chicken eggs in some supermarkets has fluctuated between 40 to 80 drams. Small and medium producers are sounding the alarm, stating that there is again dumping in the egg market, and if the state bodies do not take action, dozens of companies will close.

Hrayr Aslanyan, the director of the ‘Aramus’ poultry farm, told Sputnik Armenia that the production cost of an egg today is 55 drams, but in several supermarkets, it is already being sold for 27 drams.

“It is clear that selling eggs below their cost price cannot be beneficial for anyone. Especially since the cost of feed has increased in the global market and in Russia. The issue is that one player has entered the market, lacks a delivery network, and wants to sell eggs for 27 drams, pushing small and medium producers out of the market,” Aslanyan stated.

According to him, this is also a national security issue because a single player cannot meet the needs of the population; eggs are the third strategic product after bread and potatoes. If there is only one player in the market, they can both raise and lower the price of the product.

Aslanyan also notes that, besides this, there are millions of eggs accumulated in warehouses of large companies. The daily demand for eggs in Armenia is 2,800-3,000 cartons, which is about 1.1 million eggs, whereas currently more than 2 million eggs are being produced daily. The company’s director mentions that eggs are harmful to the body after 21 days, yet eggs that were marked one month ago are appearing in the market.

“We urge the Competition Protection Commission to take measures, otherwise dozens of enterprises will close, over 1,000 people will become unemployed, and they will leave the country. Every day is critical for small and medium companies; every day they lose one producer,” Aslanyan said.

He added that they have discussed the issue with small and medium enterprises. After that, they appealed to the Competition Protection Commission and the Prime Minister’s office, but to this day, there has been no response. Aslanyan stated that if the issue is not resolved, they will resort to extreme measures, and they are prepared to go with egg crates and block the Baghramyan Avenue and the roads leading to the airport.

The entrepreneur stressed that there should be a pricing policy in place, establishing an internal scale so that eggs are not sold below it. Aslanyan concluded his remarks by mentioning that recently it had been clarified that some companies have lowered the price of eggs to make them more affordable for pensioners, however, one cannot live on eggs alone as everything has become expensive in Armenia.

The Competition Commission informed the media that ‘Ashtarak Egg’ company has submitted a written application regarding the matter, with Hrayr Aslanyan reaching out through the hotline. “At this moment, we can say that if the issue falls under the jurisdiction of the committee, the commission will issue a statement,” the representatives of the competition commission indicated.

It is noteworthy that in March 2021, the Competition Commission fined ‘Ashtarak Egg’, ‘Araks’, and ‘Arzni’ poultry factories for unjustifiably increasing the price of eggs. ‘Ashtarak Egg’ contested the penalty of more than 15 million drams imposed by the commission in the administrative court. The administrative court rejected the company's claim.