KUCHING, May 31: The Ministry of Plantation Industries and Commodities (MPIC) will step up efforts to promote palm kernel waste as animal feed to ensure Malaysia has a sustainable supply of chickens in the long term.
According to its minister Datuk Zuraida Kamaruddin in a media statement today, one of the reasons why the cost of chicken is rising is due to the high cost of chicken feed.
“It has been reported that chicken feed had gone up from RM500 per tonne to RM1,900 per tonne in some cases.
“As a result, chickens were being fed less, causing the livestock to grow slower than normal and in the process restricting the supply of poultry,” she said.
She added that Malaysia imports most of its chicken feed, mostly made of grain like corn and soybean, but these items are facing worldwide shortages due to the Ukraine-Russia conflict and uncertain weather patterns.
“However, Malaysia’s oil palm plantations produce huge supplies of palm kernel waste. Past research has shown that feeding fermented palm kernel cake (PKC) and high dietary fat to broilers (any chicken that is bred and raised specifically for meat production) can be a good substitute for the imported feed which almost all commercial chicken farms use today.
“The MPIC will also hold discussions with other stakeholders to review our export policy on PKC in favour of local broilers. Right now, a lot of our PKC is exported for the European cattle industry,” she said.
She added that the Ministry would also work with relevant agencies, government-linked companies (GLCs), and state governments to look into how it can quickly ensure the availability of palm kernel waste as animal feed for the Malaysian poultry industry.
“Additionally, the MPIC will also be working closely with research institutes such as public universities to look into ways to enhance the quality of PKC to make it the preferred choice for chicken breeders. This includes ways of reducing the fibre content in the PKC.
“MPIC is committed to playing its part to help reduce Malaysia’s dependence on imported livestock feed, in the spirit of Keluarga Malaysia. At the end of the day, it’s about putting the interests of the people first, and the Ministry is determined to ensure the commodity sectors consistently contribute to the country’s economic development.” — DayakDaily
