UAE authorities allow retailers to charge more for chicken and eggs

Poultry products can be increased by up to 13 per cent because of higher production costs

Rising feed costs mean higher prices to consumers for items such as eggs. EPA

The cost of weekly shopping is set to go up as a temporary price rise on eggs and poultry products takes effect across the UAE.

Higher production costs from suppliers have driven an increase in price of up to 13 per cent at the checkout, the Ministry of Economy said.

The increase followed a request from poultry firms that reported significant rises in the price of fodder, shipping and overall production expenses.

“Should the grounds that gave rise to the resolution cease to exist, the resolution itself would cease to exist, considering the changes in the local, regional, and global marketplaces,” the ministry said on Saturday.

The move is designed to protect producers from soaring overheads and keep prices to consumers stable.

Prices will be revised after six months.

The UAE government imposes price controls on essential items including cooking oil, eggs, fresh milk, rice, sugar, fresh poultry, bread, flour, cleaning detergent, lentils, chickpeas and beans.

Supermarkets must ask permission to charge more than the amount set by the authorities. The long-standing policy is credited with keeping inflation under 5 per cent, around half the figure in the US and the UK last year.

Global food prices were among the highest on record in 2022 because of drought, erratic fertiliser supplies and Russia’s war in Ukraine that pushed up inflation and worsened hunger.

Grain and vegetable oils were some of the commodities worst-hit by inflation.

According to the World Bank’s Food Security Update, more than 90 per cent of lower-middle income nations reported at least a five per cent increase in year-on-year food prices in 2023.