Price of meat soaring

THE COST of this year’s ‘Tsiknopempti’, the last Thursday before Lent when people traditionally eat grilled meat, has gone up, with lamb having increased in price by 46 per cent over the past 12 months.

In the past week alone, the price of a kilo of lamb has gone up by 50 cents to £6.

President of the Butchers’ Association Costas Livadiotis yesterday told the Cyprus Mail that, “lamb is traditionally the most expensive meat and holds its value well as there is less of it.”

He said that the price of lamb can be as much as 50 per cent lower in other European countries, such as Greece and Italy, adding that the price will shortly come down in Cyprus also, as more imports are planned.

He attributed the recent price hike to difficulties importing from Greece, “where workers at the Piraeus port have been causing some problems.”

According to the Butchers’ Association, only 10 per cent of lamb consumed in Cyprus is imported, with 90 per cent being local meat.

Livadiotis said that, “the average consumption per person, per year is between 12 and 15 kilos.”

Lamb is not the only meat to have gone up in price. Pork has increased in price by 9 per cent over the past 12 months, with a kilo of pork off the bone now costing £2.45.

The price of turkey has gone up by 26 per cent, a kilo now costing £2.15, compared with £1.70 at this time last year.

The Consumers’ Association yesterday spoke out over the prices. Elias Karaiskos said that, “the current price of lamb is extremely high due to several factors, such as people not eating chicken due to the bird flu scare. Easter is around the corner and prices must come down.”

He urged consumers to purchase all types of meat, insisting that chicken is safe to eat.

With the fasting period before Easter quickly approaching, vegetables have also increased in price over the past 10 days, with cauliflower seeing a massive rise of 87 per cent, to 75 cents a kilo.