ISLAMABAD: At a cattle farm on the outskirts of Islamabad, V8, Maharaja, Champ and Professor rested beneath shaded sheds as workers hosed them down against the summer heat.
But these are not luxury cars or university scholars. They are prize bulls, bred for Pakistan’s annual Eid Al-Adha sacrifice market, where wealthy buyers often spend millions of rupees on premium animals.
Towering humps, drooping ears and gleaming white coats make these Brahman, Sahiwal and Cholistani crossbreeds among the most sought-after cattle at markets across Pakistan before Eid Al-Adha, one of the most important festivals in the Islamic calendar.
Ahead of the three-day holiday each year, millions of families purchase animals for ritual sacrifice, turning the period before Eid into one of the country’s largest seasonal livestock economies. According to Pakistan Tanners Association estimates and the Economic Survey of Pakistan 2024-25, between six and eight million animals are slaughtered nationwide during Eid Al-Adha, including around 650,000 in the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi alone.
This year, however, breeders and buyers say economic pressures are reshaping the market. Pakistan’s inflation accelerated to 10.9 percent in April from 7.3 percent a month earlier, driven partly by higher fuel and import costs linked to the ongoing conflict involving Iran and disruptions across the Middle East, a region critical to global energy supplies.
“Compared to last year, if someone was a buyer in the Rs2 million ($7,200) range, this year he may feel his purchasing power is no longer the same,”breeder Malik Marghoob Ali Awan told Arab News at Rawalpindi’s sprawling Bhatta Chowk cattle bazaar.
“Business owners who previously spent that much are now saying they may only want to spend around Rs1.5 million ($5,400) on sacrifice.”
Premium bulls at Pakistan’s cattle markets can cost anywhere between Rs2 million ($7,200) and Rs8 million ($28,800), depending on breed, size and appearance.
Awan’s own animals carry names such as Ronaldo, Suraj Mukhi, Bazigar and Sher-e-Punjab, part of a tradition among breeders who raise cattle over several years and often treat them like prized athletes.
But behind the spectacle of Pakistan’s premium Eid cattle market lies a costly and labor-intensive business that breeders say is increasingly difficult to sustain amid rising inflation and feed prices.
Awan, who has operated cattle farms for nearly three decades across Islamabad, Sahiwal and Khanewal, rejected the perception that breeders make excessive profits from the Eid market.
“People say we make huge profits but that is not true,” he said, standing beside V8 and another of his premium bulls, Sher-e-Punjab.
“At best, we earn compensation for the two or three years of hard work we put in.”
He said the names given to the animals help workers manage them more easily but also reflect emotional attachment built over years of care.
“The animals also respond to these names,” Awan said. “These are names of affection, and the animals respond to them as well.”
Awan specializes in “Nukra” cattle, prized snow-white crossbreeds of Brahman, Sahiwal and Cholistani stock. Another sought-after breed, known as Fateh Jangi, originates from Punjab’s Fateh Jang region and is valued for its muscular frame and imposing appearance.
Raising such animals requires years of investment and expensive fee. Awan often purchases calves at eight months old for up to Rs1 million ($3,600), then spends another two to three years feeding them wheat, corn and chickpeas before bringing them to market.
Breeders say rising fuel prices and broader economic uncertainty have sharply increased transportation and feeding costs over the past year. The annual cost of raising a premium calf has risen by between Rs150,000 ($540) and Rs200,000 ($719), while feed prices have nearly doubled.
Yet many buyers say sacrifice remains one area where they are unwilling to cut back.
At the crowded market, real estate businessman Saifullah Waraich said he still planned to buy a premium Fateh Jangi bull despite rising prices and economic uncertainty.
“You can see the country’s situation for yourself, but when it comes to giving in the way of Allah, those considerations are not taken into account,” he said.
“Compromise can be made in other matters, but when it comes to sacrifice, there can be no compromise.”
