Poultry feed and farm machineries might be cheaper from the next fiscal year as a result of cut in duties on their raw material imports.
According to proposed budget for fiscal year 2020-21(FY21), import duties on poultry feed and farm machineries as well as some key raw materials have been deducted.
The parliament also proposed to remove existing duties on importing soya cake and soya protein concentrates to help reducing animal feed prices.
It has proposed to remove the existing 5.0 per cent regulatory duty on soya cake import and to cut the 10 per cent custom duty (CD) on soya protein concentrates.
Moreover, FY21 budget raised duties on readymade poultry items like cuts and offal of chickens by 15 to 20 per cent to safeguard the local industry.
According to the Feed Industries Association of Bangladesh (FIAB), annual demand for animal feed is now 6.0 million tonnes.
Maize and soyabean comprises more than 80 per cent of ingredients of commercial animal feeds for poultry, cattle and fisheries sectors.
To ensure sustainable development in the fish, poultry and dairy sector, the finance ministry proposed to continue the existing tax exemptions of the sectors.
Agricultural machinery manufacturers could now import 17 kinds of materials at only 1.0 per cent of CD which was 5.0-10 per cent in the current fiscal.
Tyre, tube, ball bearing, roller chain, gear boxes, blower for grain drier etc will come under the privilege.
VAT(value added tax) has also been removed from tyre and rubber-made inner tubes for tractors at their import stage which was 15 per cent earlier.
