Ministry of Commerce has allowed 12 companies to import 4 crore pieces of eggs to increase supply in the local market and keep prices under control. They can import eggs till December 31.

The matter was confirmed in a circular from the Internal Trade-1 branch of the Ministry on Wednesday.

Earlier, at the beginning of this October, the Ministry of Commerce had allowed seven companies in the country to import 45 lakh pieces of eggs to keep the market price stable. The matter was informed in a notification of the Ministry of Commerce on October 8.

According to the notification, according to the information of the Department of Livestock, there is a daily demand of about 5 crore pieces of eggs in the country. At present, in consideration of the market situation of eggs and to keep the market price stable, because of the application of the mentioned institutions, permission has been granted to import the specified amount of eggs for a limited period. This import permit will be valid till December 31, 2024.

While the government has allowed the import of eggs, several conditions have been imposed.

The first condition is that eggs must be imported from countries free of avian influenza or bird flu. Secondly, exporters must submit a certificate from the relevant government authority in the exporting country, confirming that the eggs are free from the bird flu virus and harmful bacteria for each shipment. Thirdly, the relevant officials must be notified at least 15 days before each shipment. Fourthly, if permission is granted, progress reports related to the import must be submitted to the Ministry of Commerce every seven days.

Recently, the price of eggs in the market had nearly reached Tk200 per dozen, rising to as high as Tk190 due to supply shortages.

Following the import permission, the price of eggs has decreased, returning to previous levels, with each dozen now selling for 145 to 150 Taka.

Although the Department of Agricultural Marketing recently set a "reasonable price" for eggs, stating that the price at the production level should be Tk10.58 per egg, Tk11.01 per egg at the wholesale level, and Tk11.87 at the retail level, with a dozen prices at Tk142.44.

In response to the abnormal price increase, the Bangladesh Trade and Tariff Commission recommended temporarily lifting duties and taxes on egg imports.

Subsequently, on October 17, the National Board of Revenue (NBR) announced tax exemptions for egg imports, reducing the customs duty from 25% to 5%. This tax benefit will be effective until December 15.