Playing chicken with food prices

We know that food prices are soaring and now chicken is in the news. This week the Association for meat importers and exporters called for a three-year suspension of import tariffs on imported chicken. They argue that the tariffs raise the price of imported chicken so consumers are paying high prices while domestic producers make good profits. The Poultry Association rejected this saying that the cost of chicken products is increasing because of rising grain prices. Suspending the tariffs and importing more and cheaper chicken will put the industry on a declining trajectory and lead to job losses. It seems like a simple issue: cheap imports that benefit the consumer vs local production and jobs with the consumer paying more. But unfortunately, it is more complicated. * The Economics Minute is supported by the NWU Business School.