– Agriculture Minister engages stakeholders to ensure price stability during high-demand season

AS the Christmas season approaches, Agriculture Minister Zulfikar Mustapha on Monday met with small and medium-scale egg producers from Region Four to discuss production forecasts and strategies to ensure stable prices during the festive period.
Held at the Ministry of Agriculture, the meeting focused on addressing growing consumer concerns about fluctuating egg prices, which have reportedly ranged from G$1,200 to as high as G$2,000 per tray in some areas.
Minister Mustapha explained that demand for eggs traditionally rises sharply during the holiday season, and urged producers to keep prices manageable to protect consumers.
“We were looking at ways to stabilise the prices for eggs, because there are different prices in different parts of the country. Some places were selling for $1,200, while others were selling for as much as $2,000. Consumers were complaining about the prices, so we decided to put systems in place to address that,” the Minister said.
He added, “This meeting is to discuss the position of the industry; for you to tell us if you can satisfy the demand, and what the suggested prices will be, because we are approaching the holiday season. During these peak times, people tend to increase prices because of the demand. If prices cannot be stabilised, we will have to put systems in place to ensure consumers can purchase eggs at an affordable cost.”
Following the discussions, producers agreed to maintain a suggested uniform price for eggs across Region Fou (Demerara-Mahaica), a move expected to reduce arbitrary price hikes, and ensure affordability for consumers during the high-demand period.
Minister Mustapha also reminded producers that maintaining stability in the prices of essential commodities, including eggs and poultry meat, has been a long-standing priority for the government, particularly during festive seasons.
He noted that earlier this year, the Ministry of Agriculture signalled its intention to increase local hatching-egg production to reduce reliance on imports, strengthen supply chains, and stabilise market costs.
Additionally, the Minister announced that the New Guyana Marketing Corporation (GMC) will collaborate with egg producers to facilitate farmers’ markets ahead of Christmas, allowing producers to sell directly to consumers at fair and transparent prices.
Also attending the meeting were Permanent Secretary Daun Ellis and Director-General Dhaneshwar Deonarine.