HYDERABAD: There is no doubt that Hyderabadis love their food. And chicken seems to be the favourite on the platter not only in the state capital but across Andhra Pradesh.In yet to be released statistics of the Animal Husbandry, it is clear what Andhra people love- chicken, whether be it cooked, deep-fried, roasted or grilled. Medak district tops the list producing 43,878 tonnes of chicken in 2010-11, which is almost 50 per cent of the total meat it produces. Also Andhraites consume around 2,000 tonnes of meat daily.“The maximum meat consumption is during October to January. One reason is because its winter and secondly this period witnesses a number of festivals from Dussehra to Bakrid to Christmas and finally Sankranti,” said Soma Sekhar, additional director, Animal Husbandry department.The department has estimated that total production of all types of meat will reach 11 lakh tonnes by 2015, up from the current volume of 7.2 lakh tonnes. “Even the average daily meat consumption per person comes to around 24 gm, much higher than the national average of less than 10 gm,” said Natarajan, a veterinary doctor. There is no doubt then its chicken which rules the roost on Andhra menus.Between March and June 2011 alone, the state produced around two lakh tonnes of meat, of which the evergreen chicken comprises more than 50 per cent.“Its not really a surprise to know preference for chicken and other meats are so high here. We sell more than 60 full grilled chicken daily, despite there being bigger shops adjacent to ours which do much larger volumes of business,” a shop owner near Madhapur said.A techie observes, “If you look at Hyderabad, the cost of meat items is lot cheaper than in other cities, where a full chicken might cost between Rs 250- 300. Here it is around Rs 140- 200, which is easy on the pocket for most.”
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