Category: Beef and Sheep
By: Fathi Belhouadjeb, Barbara Wildegger
Islamic holidays and the impact on sheep prices
The Muslim calendar is based on the lunar month. As a lunar month has a theoretical period of 29 days 12:44 min and 3 s, the lunar year has a total of 354 or 355 days per year. This means that the lunar year is on average 11 days shorter than the solar year (365 days). Consequently, the Islamic holidays are moving forward (to an earlier date of the solar year) 11 days every year. The same applies to the price effect on sheep.
With about 1.6 billion Muslims, or 23% of the world’s population, Islam is the second-largest world religion.
In Algeria, as in other Muslim countries, religious holiday periods have an impact on the prices of meat and livestock for slaughter. Two specific holidays are of significance: Ramadan and Eid al-Adha - the Festival of Sacrifice, which is the tenth day of the twelfth month of the Muslim calendar. On this sacred day, Muslims who are financially able sacrifice an animal (one sheep or goat for one person and his/her family, or one cow/camel for seven people and their families).
Based on data from Djelfa (the biggest sheep producing region in Algeria), the analysis of the monthly average of sheep intended for slaughter shows that the most notable increase was observed during periods of religious festivals, i.e. Ramadan and Eid al-Adha, with the latter recording the largest increase (see chart).
With the beginning of Ramadan, meat prices and also sheep livestock prices go up because the sheep meat consumption rises in this month. After the month of Ramadan, the demand for meat is diminished, but the prices for sheep keep rising due to the fact that traders and people start purchasing them 2 months ahead the Eid al-Adha.
The monitoring data reveals that the price difference between the first day of Ramadhan and Eid al-Adha may exceed 7000 DA (Algerian dinars); such price increases could be found in 2007 for sheep (more than 12 months old) and in 2008 for old lambs (between 6 and 12 months of age). Prices for young lambs (less than 6 months) remain relatively stable because they are not allowed for sacrifice.
Further information about cost of production and competitiveness of Algerian sheep meat are published in an article by Fathi Belhouadjeb (in French):
Le coût de production et la compétitivité de la viande ovine algérienne : Cas de l’agneau de Djelfa