Saudis in social media drive seek lower meat prices in shops

After the prices of livestock dropped by 40 percent in some Saudi governorates, a campaign calling for boycott of shops which sell meat and Mandi dishes has been launched because they did not decrease their prices.

The aim behind this boycott by citizens is to force restaurants and butcher shops to decrease their prices across the kingdom.

Many took to Twitter and tweeted using the hashtag #boycott_Mandi_restaurants in an attempt to push restaurant owners to decrease their prices. According to those who launched the campaign, all social groups are participating in the popular campaign.

The price of sheep in some governorates had recently decreased. For instance, the price of the three-month-old Naimi lamb dropped from $213.174 (800 Saudi riyal) to $120 (450 Saudi riyal) while the one aged six months, dropped from $319.76 (1,200 Saudi riyal) to $160 (600 Saudi riyal). Meanwhile, the price of medium-sized sheep dropped from 239.82 (900 Saudi riyal) to $107 (400 Saudi riyal).

Restaurant prices

However, restaurants did not decrease the price of their meat after this drop in livestock prices.

The Saudi daily Al-Eqtisadiah daily, quoting governmental reports, merchants and farmers said the reason behind this recent depressed prices is the increase of sheep in the market and the decline in demand due to consumers' weak purchasing power.

A governmental report carried out by the livestock department at the ministry of environment, agriculture and water about livestock prices in some areas noted that the price of livestock, whether local or imported, greatly dropped between 35 percent and 55 percent.