Price of chicken products in Nepal, which had fallen significantly around two months back due to the spread of bird flu in India, has now soared on the back of shortfall in supply.

The retail price of live chicken went up to 140-150 Nepali rupees (2-2.14 U.S. dollars) per kg on Saturday in Kathmandu.

Prior to the bird flu outbreak in India it stood 120 rupees (1. 7 dollars) per kg, while with the spread of the disease, the price nosedived to as low as 60 rupees (0.85 dollars) per kg around two months back.

Poultry entrepreneurs attributed decline in production for the rise in prices.

"The production of chickens has dropped by around 50 percent as compared to normal daily production before the spread of H5N1 virus in India," Naryan Hari Khatri of Asapuri Hatchery here said.

"Consumption, on the other hand, has bounced back to a normal level," Khatri told reporters on Saturday.

As the bird flu outbreak in India scared Nepali consumers to consume chicken products, its consumption took a nosedive. Consequently, poultry farmers stopped rearing chicks, resulting in low supply now, Khatri said.

Spread of H5N1 virus in India about two months ago severely impacted Nepali poultry business. Chicken sales then had gone down by around 75 percent, according to Khatri.

"Around 80 percent chicks produced at that time were killed, as farmers did not approach hatchery for new purchase," Khatri added.

"After the negative market response, killing chicks was more beneficial economically than rearing those," he said.

According to Khatri, around 100,000 chicks were produced daily in the normal period in the country.

He predicted that the prices will keep up rising until a next month and then begin to fall.

"It takes 55 to 60 days for a chick to fully grow and be ready for slaughter," he said.

According to National Hatchery Industries Association Nepal, poultry sector, which currently has investment of around 16 billion rupees (228 million U.S. dollars), has directly employed around 65,000 people.

The daily chicken consumption in Nepal is expected to be around 200,000 kg.

Source: Xinhua