Enab Baladi – Hani Karazi

Two and a half months ago, the Syrian regime’s government announced the start of importing four million heads of cattle and sheep, followed by other decisions allowing the import of livestock and chicks. This raised questions about the purpose of these import operations and their contribution to lowering meat prices in the local market.

On May 16, the local al-Watan newspaper reported that the regime’s government had started importing about four million heads of small-weight and small-aged cattle and sheep for the first time in 12 years, as part of a series of measures to reduce high meat prices.

The newspaper added that the imported livestock would be distributed to breeders, raised, and fed locally. When they reach the natural export weight, it will be decided whether to allow their export to benefit from foreign currency or to allocate them entirely to the local market.

The regime’s announcement of importing a large batch of livestock was followed by several import operations. On June 23, the regime’s General Organization for Poultry announced the import of 20,000 Russian chicks for the benefit of the Homs Poultry Facility to raise them and benefit from them in producing about two million chicks and 600 million table eggs, according to al-Watan.

On July 25, al-Khair Holding Group affiliated with the Qaterji Group announced the arrival of batches of Romanian sheep and Moldovan cattle, indicating that the import was to break meat prices in Syrian markets.

On the same day, the Butchers Association in Damascus announced the start of importing livestock from Venezuela, noting that 2,000 heads of sheep would be imported by one of the importers as a trial step to enhance the diversity and availability of meat in the local market.

Prices have not dropped

Despite the regime’s government announcing the import of large numbers of livestock and poultry over the past two months, meat prices have not significantly decreased.

Yahya al-Khan, head of the Butchers Association in Damascus, said to the pro-regime Sham FM radio that importing 2000 heads of sheep and goats will not affect the prices in the Damascus market, as 700 heads of sheep are slaughtered daily and distributed to the market.

He confirmed that the prices affected by the import concern calf meat, as it was directly introduced to the markets, leading to a price drop of about 30,000 Syrian pounds per kg in wholesale markets.

Al-Khan explained that “the cost of importing heads of sheep from abroad is not less than local breeding costs,” adding, “I am not in favor of importing livestock because it does not reduce the market price, and its costs are high and not accepted by consumers.”

Enab Baladi monitored meat and chicken prices in Damascus and found that prices were still high. The price of one kilo of lamb lean meat ranges between 200,000 and 220,000 Syrian pounds, one kilo of lamb ground meat between 140,000 and 160,000 pounds, one kilo of calf lean meat between 170,000 and 175,000 pounds, while one kilo of calf ground meat ranges between 155,000 and 160,000 Syrian pounds.

The price of one kilo of chicken breast fillets was 80,000 pounds, one kilo of wings 38,000 pounds, one kilo of thigh 50,000 pounds, and one kilo of drumstick 45,000 Syrian pounds, with prices varying by region and shop.

Comparing the current prices with the previous month, the prices remained the same, with a slight decrease in some varieties. Last month, the price per kilo of lamb lean meat was between 240,000 and 250,000 pounds, and lamb ground meat between 165,000 and 185,000 pounds, while chicken and calf meat prices remained the same.

Each US dollar equals 14,700 Syrian pounds, according to the currency-focused S-P Today website.

Deals to appease war traders

Economic analyst Mohamed Bakour commented on the impact of livestock imports on the local market, saying that the purpose of the deals announced by the regime’s government is to “appease war traders,” as the imported livestock does not usually enter the local market. Instead, they aim to raise and fatten them before re-exporting to gain foreign currency.

Bakour told Enab Baladi that most livestock import operations are conducted by al-Khair Company, affiliated with the Qaterji Group. It was noted that after the assassination of Baraa Qaterji, his brothers announced a deal to import sheep and cattle from Romania and Moldova, apparently as a concession from the regime to appease them after the blow caused by their brother’s death and rumors about al-Assad’s involvement in his assassination.

Bakour pointed out that the local market cannot even absorb domestic production due to the weak purchasing power of citizens and low demand for meat, confirming that “the import deals by al-Assad’s government aim to re-export, not to enter the local market as claimed.”

He added that the occasional drop in meat and chicken prices is not due to import operations but rather due to power outages, high temperatures, and low demand, forcing sellers to lower prices before their meat spoils.

In mid-June, the Syrian Ministry of Industry announced granting several investment projects to entrepreneur Hussam Qaterji after a months-long halt due to some obstacles.

The local North Press site, citing a government security source, reported that an agreement was made between Asma al-Assad and Hussam Qaterji to allow the latter to resume his commercial activities in exchange for giving 40% of Qaterji’s resources to the secret economic council managed by Asma al-Assad, alongside ceasing oil dealings with Iran.

Following this agreement, the Qaterji Holding Group changed its name to al-Khair Holding Group, which includes about 31 companies and factories across different specialties, including al-Khair for Livestock, which specializes in raising and exporting or importing livestock.

On July 28, the Qaterji Group announced the establishment of Bawader al-Khair in the Naqarin area of Aleppo, spanning over more than two million square meters, aimed at “preserving livestock resources.”

The Qaterji family is considered one of the prominent war traders close to the Syrian regime, which has allowed the family’s influence to expand and strengthen their presence in the country’s economy in recent years.

Economic expert Radwan al-Dibs told Enab Baladi that “the livestock and poultry import operations carried out by some influential people, led by Qaterji, aim to launder money” so that it can be said they earn profits through export and import operations under official contracts.

In May 2023, Syrian regime’s President Bashar al-Assad issued a law exempting the import of cows intended for breeding from customs duties, taxes, and other fees, for five years from that date.

Inflated numbers

Al-Watan newspaper reported that the deal to import four million heads of livestock includes three million sheep and one million cattle, confirming the arrival of the first batches amidst doubts about the accuracy of these numbers.

In this context, Radwan al-Dibs said that the numbers announced by the Assad regime are inflated and intended for media purposes to show the public that the government has the financial capacity to carry out large import deals for the benefit of the people, while in reality, “the regime is economically collapsed and does not possess the sufficient foreign currency to import those huge numbers.”

Al-Dibs added that the local market could not absorb four million heads of sheep and cattle, and there are no suitable conditions for raising imported livestock due to challenges in securing feed, treatment, fattening farms, veterinary staff, electricity, and supervisors for raising them. “Therefore, all these factors hinder the possibility of importing large numbers of livestock.”

Al-Dibs explained that the regime’s announced fictitious import operations could psychologically affect citizens, who might refrain from buying until the imported meat is pumped into the local market at a lower price. Thus, lower demand could lead to meat stagnation, contributing to a temporary price drop. However, prices quickly rise again when people realize that “livestock importation is just fake announcements,” leading to increased demand in the local market again.

Factors destroying livestock resources

On February 26, 2022, the director of animal production in the Ministry of Agriculture under the regime, Osama Hammoud, announced that Syria had lost about 40% to 50% of its livestock due to the global rise in feed prices, in addition to economic sanctions on the regime.

According to the latest statistics on livestock numbers in Syria, reported by the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) in September 2023, the number of cattle was 853,000 heads and 17.8 million heads of sheep.

The number of goats is two million heads, around 6,500 heads of buffalo, while the total number of chickens is about 14.5 million birds, including about 9.2 million birds producing around 1.7 billion eggs.

According to a report by the local Athr Press website in August 2023, livestock numbers fell by various rates between 2011 and 2021, with the number of cattle decreasing by 25%, goats by 17%, and sheep by 7%.

Economic researcher Mohamed al-Abdallah from the Omran Center for Strategic Studies said that one of the most prominent reasons for the decline in livestock resources is the unsuitability of the local environment for this sector in a country experiencing conflict since 2011.

Al-Abdallah told Enab Baladi that other factors also affected the continued support for the livestock sector, including a significant decline in grazing areas, the death of large numbers of livestock due to disease outbreaks, high veterinary drug prices, and high feed prices. In addition, there is the widespread phenomenon of smuggling livestock to neighboring areas and countries for profit.

Al-Abdallah pointed out that the “widespread” economic corruption in the regime’s institutions and the presence of networks of beneficiaries in institutions related to this sector, headed by the General Feed Corporation, banks, agricultural chambers, and the General Union of Farmers, played a significant role in the decline of livestock resources.

Al-Abdallah explained that the role of these networks became evident through their control over the prices and distribution of feed at the institution, with subsidized feed prices reaching levels close to traders’ prices. It is no longer hidden the networking between feed traders and these networks, to import and monopolize feed and impose its prices in the local market, aiming to achieve profits estimated to be in the billions of Syrian pounds, in the absence of price control oversight.