Harim Leads Expansion of Chicken Supply... "2.4 Million Hatching Eggs to be Imported Starting August"

Response to Government's Market Stabilization Request
"Broiler Supply to Increase Starting October"

Harim announced on the 18th that it has decided to increase chicken supply to ensure the stable growth and supply-demand balance of the domestic broiler industry. This move follows the government's request to expand supply after chicken prices rose sharply in the first half of this year due to a shortage of broiler supply, which also affected consumer prices.

Broiler supply farms contracted with Harim
Photo by Harim

Harim decided to increase chicken supply by importing 'jongran,' eggs used to obtain chicks. Starting from the week of the 21st of next month, Harim plans to import a total of 2.4 million jongran over 8 weeks, with 300,000 eggs per week from the United States or the European Union (EU).

It takes at least 55 days from importing jongran to shipping them as broilers. Accordingly, Harim explained that if the stocking volume is expanded in earnest in August, the amount of chicken supplied to the market will increase from October.

The shortage of chicken supply was greatly affected by the outbreak of avian influenza (AI) earlier this year, which led to the culling of 5.15 million chickens and jongran nationwide (from 25 farms and hatcheries). In addition, abnormal weather conditions reduced productivity, and the impact of rising international grain prices and exchange rates was added.

Earlier, on the 13th, the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs held a 'Supply-Demand Adjustment Council for Expanding Chicken Supply' attended by about 10 integrated operators, livestock policy officers, and livestock management chiefs, requesting the related industry to expand supply.

Harim has actively cooperated with the government's request to supply more chicken due to the broiler supply shortage and has been implementing plans to increase production volumes in August (1st phase) and December (2nd phase) of last year, and April (3rd phase) of this year. Additionally, by deciding to import jongran to increase chicken supply, Harim aims to resolve long-term supply instability and promote sustainable growth for consumers and poultry farmers. Expanding chicken supply will increase the breeding cycle with farmers and lead to higher farm incomes, positively impacting profitability.

Jung Ho-seok, CEO of Harim, stated, "We will actively promote plans to expand chicken supply to resolve the supply instability of chicken, which is loved as a staple food and snack by the entire nation. We will actively participate in government policies by expanding jongran imports and increasing chick stocking, and strive for the continuous growth of the broiler industry through the company's role in this crisis situation."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.