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As egg prices increase, backyard chickens are getting harder to come by and much more expensive.
Key points:
- A resident says people have even asked her to sell her chickens to them
- Mount Gambier Poultry and Pigeon Club Melissa Macintosh-Kennedy secretary says chickens are expensive to keep
- She says people should buy chickens only if they like them
One poultry breeder and seller says they can't produce enough chickens to satisfy consumer demand.
South Australia-based business WinkleWood Estate Poultry sells chickens, turkeys, ducks, geese, guineafowls, and pheasants from its property.
Since starting the Mount Gambier business in 2020, co-owner Geoff Wood said they had not been able to keep up with incoming requests.
"We sort of started out doing it for a bit of fun, and the demand was there," he said.
"It just got out of control … it has been full-on.
"I think if we had had another 1,000 chooks, we would have been able to sell them this year."
Mr Wood said, with egg prices on the rise, his customers often told him they were buying their poultry for home-laid eggs.
"I think most people are after a couple of chooks to lay eggs and eat scraps in their backyard," he said.
"Everyone wants to be able to have eggs and not rely on anyone else for them.
"We also sold quite a lot of ducks this year. We've got Indian runners, and they lay good eggs as well."
And it is not just WinkleWood Estate Poultry that has seen an increase in interest, with a resident even getting unsolicited offers to buy their poultry.
People 'desperate' to buy poultry
"I've had people pulling up in front of my own house because they've seen the poultry out front, and they are wanting to buy," Mount Gambier Poultry and Pigeon Club secretary Melissa Macintosh-Kennedy said.
"People are desperate to get their hands on chooks and ducks."
But is it as simple as buying a chicken and saving money on your eggs?
"I think you spend more money on getting set up and looking after the chickens," Ms Macintosh-Kennedy said.
"I don't think people realise the price of feed has gone up crazily … you are not necessarily going to end up ahead.
"You should be buying them because you like them and you want a bit of company."
Increase in chicken prices
Ms Macintosh-Kennedy said she had seen an increase in prices for poultry as well.
"Before you would pay $10 or $15 and now you are paying $35 to $40 for a bird," she said.
The safety of her poultry has even become a concern for Ms Macintosh-Kennedy, as she has heard reports from other owners in different regions of chickens going missing — and not just from foxes.
"I think some [poultry] are getting stolen, but I don't think anyone's reporting it," she said.
"I have been careful with who I let come and see my property."
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