Market Trends of oman poultry meat Industry
High consumption of poultry meat and government investments are increasing production
- The number of Omani youth aged 18 to 29 years is 0.54 million men and women, representing 19.4% of the total population, which mainly consumes processed poultry meat. However, the total population of Oman reached 4.51 million in 2021, out of which 2.8 million were Omanis and 1.74 million were expatriates who highly consume processed poultry products. Due to their hectic lifestyles, they prefer to purchase products with longer shelf lives, increasing the demand for frozen, canned, and processed poultry meat in the country.
- Poultry production accounted for the fourth highest share of 7.4% of total meat production in the country. The country is focused more on imports to meet consumers’ demand; therefore, around 0.13 million tonnes of poultry meat was imported in 2021. Due to high import prices and increasing demand for fresh/chilled poultry meat, the government is investing in increasing domestic production. It is also taking initiatives to increase domestic poultry production, as the per capita consumption of poultry meat is high in the country and is expected to grow gradually in the upcoming years, thus creating a market for international poultry producers.
- Domestic poultry meat production increased by approximately 60 to 70 tonnes compared to 2020, reaching 7,000 metric tonnes in 2021. Of the total production, Dhofar produced approximately 5,000 tonnes of poultry meat in 2021. The company is a prominent poultry producer and supplier of chicken, with a processing facility and farms located in Salalah, Oman, and other GCC countries. The company had planned to increase its revenue to USD 31.1 million in 2021 from USD 5.2 million in 2020.
Rising international tourism and high spending on meat are increasing the market prices
- The sales value of poultry meat increased by 7.3% from 2020 to 2022, reaching USD 187.27 million in 2022 due to the increase in average prices for poultry meat, which rose by 4.34% from 1.74 per kg in 2020 to 1.81 per kg in 2022. The rising international tourism and the large Muslim population are key factors driving the sales of poultry meat in the country. For instance, around 273.01 thousand visitors came to Oman in 2022, which was 161.58 thousand higher than the 2021 data.
- However, due to the high Muslim population in the country, which accounts for more than 95% of the population, the demand for poultry meat is high, as people prefer to eat meat on a regular basis. The spending on food in Oman is high, as 24% of the household budget was spent on food in the country in 2021, while the prices for poultry meat were the lowest, around 30% lower than red meat prices. Thus, the demand for poultry meat is high, as its protein content range is 26 to 28 g per 100 g of meat, which is sufficient to meet regular intake.
- Oman's inflation rate has been on the rise, increasing the cost of poultry meat. The inflation rate in Oman in 2021 was 2.4%, driven by a 4.9% increase in food prices and a 2.9% rise in hotel and restaurant prices compared to the same period of the previous year. The prices of poultry meat were particularly high in 2021 and 2022, reaching as high as 1.79 per kg in 2021 and as low as 1.81 per kg in 2022, due to the country's high reliance on imports, which exceeded 126.96 thousand tons in 2021. As a result of the rise in import prices and increased taxes on meat, the government has shifted its focus to domestic production.