Value Chains research report Tajikistan final - Microfinance Centre

Because the majority of the population of Tajikistan, including both meat
consumers and butchers are Muslims it is necessary to consider the religious
requirements of slaughter.
Marketing of Meat.
Marketing of meat and meat products is not developed in Tajikistan. Marketing of meat
considers four factors:
• Commodity for general use,
• Generic product non-branded,
• Value added products, and
• Products with value add cost of a brand.
Currently, all meats in Tajikistan are selling for general use as a raw production.
There exists extensive opportunities for brand and process meat product development
adding value to meat products. Branding is another opportunity as there currently are
no identifiable brands. Currently, meat purveyors market beef as a commodity and have
not yet realized the opportunities presented by improved quality and consistency.
Meat Sale
Meat sales are through local stalls along the roads, trade centers and markets.
Often, the butcher is the retailer, handling product from purchase at the livestock market
through slaughter then retail sale. There is also consolidation of several meat stalls
under the control of one or several butchers who employ sales people for selling the
meat. The role of these meat sellers is carcass cutting and meat sales. Butchers, who
have control over several sale points, are the people who control the prices in the
market. There is no wholesale meat market as most butchers do not want centralized
wholesale sales to occur.
Before the carcass is cut, a veterinarian provides a certificate of inspection
following slaughter. Usually, a veterinarian takes 800 grams of meat for analysis.
Analysis preparations are centralized in regional laboratories. However, butchers
recognized that current inspection is superficial.
If the farmer slaughters cattle himself (to save money or as a forced slaughter),
the meat will be brought to the morning market and sold to meat traders at wholesale
prices. Sometimes in the morning, such carcass can be resold between several
businessmen, from one to another and each will add a margin. Usually, the meat does
not have a certificate from a veterinarian certifying slaughter inspection.
Seasonal sales of meat occur between July and September. The lowest amount
of meat sold occurs during the winter, which is associated with the procurement of cattle
for meat, among the population
Butchers may actually lose money on the sale of meat if the it is not sold quickly
due to shrinkage and stall rental costs. The profit of the butcher consist of the following
98