Egg prices in Myanmar have soared to an unprecedented 700 kyats apiece as poultry farmers struggle under the regime’s import restrictions on animal feed and veterinary medicines.
To contain the price hike, the regime has set a ceiling of 550 kyats in Yangon, but members of the Myanmar Livestock Federation warn that is at best a temporary fix.
Before the 2021 coup, eggs cost around 100–150 kyats. Poultry farmers put the blame for the surge on putsch leader Min Aung Hlaing, who ordered them to replace imported soybean meal with local feed to stop the country hemorrhaging dollars.
Poor‑quality local feed caused fungal infections in the rainy season, leading to diarrhea outbreaks and culls at chicken farms. To make matters worse, the regime also restricted the import of essential drugs to protect their poultry’s health.
“The laying rate dropped by 80 percent,” a poultry farmer told The Irrawaddy. At the same time, demand soared because more people rely on eggs for their protein as meat prices skyrocket.
Distributors were permitted to import 300,000 tons of soybean meal in 2024 and 200,000 tons in 2025 but only 100,000 tons this year, according to industry insiders.
Farmers warn that without timely imports of feed, medicines and other supplies, they will be unable to withstand rising costs over the next four or five months, noting that production costs at the farm level are already 440 kyats per egg. By the time the eggs reach retailers that increases to around 530 kyats.
“That means selling at 550 kyats is just a temporary fix,” one said. “It will take at least four to five months to replace all the dead chickens and restore production. We need chickens and vaccines, and we must be allowed to import them, otherwise prices will keep climbing.”
On Monday, livestock entrepreneurs met with Commerce Minister Tun Ohn in Yangon, who promised to ease import restrictions on medicines. But farmers remain skeptical, saying decisions are tightly controlled by Min Aung Hlaing, who is on a frugality crusade.