Meat-eaters in the city, at least some of them, seem to be shifting allegiances and duck meat, as opposed to chicken, is very much the choice of the season.

Officials of the animal resources development department have been pleasantly surprised at the spurt in the sale of spent duck (infertile ducks which can no longer lay eggs) meat from government outlets in the city.

?There has been a significant increase in the sale of spent duck meat since three Suravi outlets were opened in the city a few months ago. Though we also sell other kinds of meat, including turkey and rabbit meat, at these outlets, spent duck meat in a dressed form has become very popular. Duck meat comes quite cheap at Rs 60 per kilogram. Dressed duck meat is Rs 20 dearer per kilogram. A lot of people are happy to buy dressed meat at that price,? an official of the department said on Saturday.

The three Suravi outlets are located at Jadavpur, New Market and Entally.

Surprised at the huge demand for spent duck meat, the state government is now wondering whether it might turn out to be an alternative to chicken.

?When we opened the three outlets, we decided to keep spent duck meat without ever thinking that it would become one of the most popular items. Since then, we have discovered that people are happier to buy a kilogram of dressed spent duck than dressed chicken as the former is much cheaper,? the official, who is himself a regular buyer of spent duck meat, added.

The official said that initially the three shops used to sell, on an average, about 5-10 kg of spent duck meat every day. The sale has now increased to 40 kg per day on an average.

At least 10 more Suravi outlets will be opened in the city, two of them shortly. ?We are expecting the sale to increase further as more and more people get to know about spent duck meat,? the official added.

?It is now clear to us that many middle-class people are very happy to buy spent duck. It definitely helps that spent duck compares favourably with chicken in the taste department. We are wondering if it can be the alternative to chicken for some people,? the official said, adding, ?however, we need to generate more awareness about spent duck meat.?

He said it is difficult to come to an immediate conclusion regarding culinary preferences of Calcuttans. ?Sometimes people tend to stick to their old habits and refuse to experiment even if good alternatives are available. Chicken is so much a part of people?s food habit, that spent duck, even though it is cheaper, might not become as popular. It might only prove to be a good diversion. The best thing to do therefore is to wait and watch before drawing a conclusion,? he said.