Many of us recall the age old rhyme, which came first, the chicken or the egg and this riddle which has puzzled many people is now making its rounds in Malaysia as various factors have led to a shortage of the supply of eggs in several parts of the country.

Consumers are being blamed for causing a surge in demand and the Agriculture and Food Industry (MAFI) and Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry (KPDNHEP) reported that the projected demand was not predicted accurately.

MAFI stated that there is normally a high demand for eggs at this time of the year and reports that while there is no shortage of premium eggs (which are not a controlled item), there is a shortage of graded eggs A, B and C due to poor planning.

Compounding the problem was a request by egg producers for the government to increase subsidies as their cost of production has increased and the decrease in the value of the Ringgit lowered their profits as proteins fed to layered chicken were imported.

Meanwhile, livestock farmers scoffed at the claims of sabotage swirling on social media and stated that the shortage of eggs was a global phenomenon and had nothing to do with allegations that there was a shortage before the general election and they were now flooding the market.

These claims are baseless, say the Federation of Livestock Farmers’ Association of Malaysia as eggs are a perishable item and it is impossible to hoard them. They assured Malaysians, however, that local farmers were working hard to produce more eggs.

-THE MALAYSIA VOICE