The head of the Syndicate of Traders and Importers of Fresh, Chilled, and Frozen Meat, Joseph Haber confirmed that “if meat is available and the Central Bank of Lebanon supports the traders, the price of meat will range between 300,000 and 350,000 LBP.”

Haber stressed in a radio interview: “We don’t have livestock, but rather depend on imports.”

The Syndicate warned that the current situation would lead to closing farms and meat warehouses, as well as halting imports if the Central Bank did not take the initiative, and before Ramadan, to pay the late financial payments in favor of suppliers before the aforementioned date.

The Syndicate attributed the meat crisis and its high prices to the drop in imports, because the Central Bank has withheld the suppliers’ dues, as well as the high fuel prices and transportation costs, in addition to the high prices of meat and livestock globally.