𝐆𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐀𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐎𝐧𝐞-𝐓𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐄𝐠𝐠 𝐈𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐚𝐬 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐒𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐞 𝐀𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐒𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐥 𝐑𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠

… 𝒎𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒂𝒊𝒎𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒆 𝒔𝒐𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒆𝒈𝒈 𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒄𝒆𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝑵𝒖. 570 𝒕𝒐 𝑵𝒖. 600 𝒑𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒚 𝒘𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒈𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒅𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒄 𝒑𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒕𝒓𝒚 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒖𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒓𝒖𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒔𝒖𝒑𝒑𝒍𝒚 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒐𝒏𝒆-𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒅-𝒐𝒏𝒆-𝒆𝒈𝒈 𝒑𝒓𝒐𝒈𝒓𝒂𝒎𝒎𝒆

By Tashi Namgyel

The Royal Government has approved a one-time import of eggs to stabilize soaring prices and address persistent supply shortages, amid concerns over uninterrupted provision for the One-Child-One-Egg programme as schools prepare to reopen.

Under the decision, the Food Corporation of Bhutan Limited (FCBL) will import 3,000 cartons of white eggs from Andhra Pradesh, India. The consignment is expected to reach the country by the end of February 2026 and will be distributed through FCBL outlets across all 20 Dzongkhags to improve public access to affordable eggs.

The eggs will be sold through the corporation’s retail network to help moderate market prices, which currently range between Nu. 570 and Nu. 600 per tray, depending on location. These prices are significantly higher than in previous years and have placed pressure on households, institutions, and feeding programmes that rely heavily on eggs as a cost-effective and nutritious food item.

The decision comes at a time when egg prices have remained unusually high across the country, prompting concern among households, institutions, and education authorities. Eggs are a key source of affordable protein for many Bhutanese families, and sustained price increases have raised questions about access and affordability, particularly for school feeding programmes.

The move is intended as a short-term intervention to ease immediate supply pressures while longer-term domestic production measures take effect. Despite earlier government initiatives aimed at regulating the import of eggs and layer day-old chicks, the domestic egg market has continued to experience volatility in recent months.

“The one-time import has been approved to stabilize prices and ensure availability of eggs, particularly with schools reopening and demand expected to rise,” said Thinley Namgyel, Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock. “Any further imports will be carefully assessed based on domestic production and market conditions.”

Ensuring uninterrupted supply for the One-Child-One-Egg programme remains a key priority for the government, particularly as schools prepare to reopen and demand is expected to rise. The Secretary said imported eggs will be used where necessary to supplement domestic supply until local production stabilizes.

Poultry farming has long been regarded as one of the success stories of Bhutan’s livestock sector, particularly since the restriction on egg imports was imposed in 2008 to prevent the spread of avian influenza. The policy was designed to protect both public health and the domestic poultry industry from diseases such as H5N1, which can be transmitted from birds to humans and may result in severe illness or death.

Following the import restriction, successive governments actively promoted poultry farming as a means of enhancing rural livelihoods, increasing domestic food production, and reducing dependence on imports. Investments were made in farm development, veterinary services, and farmer training, leading to steady growth in egg production over the years.

According to the National Statistics Bureau’s Integrated Agriculture and Livestock Census 2025, about 18,213 households are currently engaged in poultry farming nationwide. The country has a poultry population of 924,488 birds, and annual egg production stands at 98.172 million eggs, placing the sector among the more significant contributors to rural income and food security.

Under the 13th Five-Year Plan, the government has set an ambitious target of producing 120 million eggs annually, reflecting its long-term commitment to self-sufficiency in egg production and the strengthening of domestic supply chains.

Despite steady growth, officials acknowledge that the poultry sector has faced major setbacks due to recurring disease outbreaks. Since the first recorded outbreak of avian influenza in 2010, Bhutan has experienced 19 outbreaks, including a recent case reported last month in Toorsa, Phuentsholing, involving a Tshetar poultry holding. These outbreaks have periodically disrupted production and undermined market stability.

In addition to avian influenza, the sector suffered a major blow in December 2021 when suspected poultry feed contamination led to the death of 78,672 birds and affected 485,245 layer birds across 529 households. The incident caused daily egg production to plummet from 382,490 eggs to just 120,723 eggs, a decline of more than 68 percent, creating long-lasting effects on supply and pricing.

To address the current shortage and rebuild production capacity, the Ministry had earlier identified five private Bhutanese suppliers to import 120,000 layer day-old chicks between December 2025 and March 2026. The measure was carefully planned to boost future egg production while avoiding the risk of oversupply once production normalizes.

However, all five suppliers later reported difficulties in sourcing the required numbers, citing that the quantities requested were too small for Indian suppliers to process economically. This setback delayed the expected inflow of layer chicks and further tightened supply projections for the coming months.

In response, the government stepped in to bridge the gap. Three government input farms under the Department of Livestock increased their production capacity and have already supplied more than 231,000 day-old chicks to layer farms across 16 Dzongkhags. Distribution is continuing nationwide to ensure farmers have sufficient stock to rebuild egg production levels.

“With the increased supply of day-old chicks, egg production is expected to improve from mid-April to May 2026, which should ease the current shortage and stabilize supply,” the Secretary said.

“Our priority is to ensure uninterrupted supply for essential programmes while strengthening long-term domestic production,” he added. 

Beyond immediate interventions, the Ministry is also focusing on longer-term measures to strengthen the poultry sector. These include capacity-building initiatives for farmer groups and cooperatives at the dzongkhag level to improve coordination, streamline supply chains, and enhance both production and marketing systems, with the aim of building a more resilient and sustainable egg industry.