Malaysia Veterinary Forum (Archive)

Dr. TanDY

Malaysia must get its cattle rearing business moving

Date: 11 December 2006
Source: Business Times

MALAYSIA is blessed with fertile land and a climate conducive for farming.

However, it still spends about RM13 billion a year on food products from abroad and produces only RM7 billion worth of its own food.

Meat products constitute a significant bulk of imported food produce, about RM4 billion annually, while only about RM1.4 billion is sourced locally.

In contrast, the Netherlands which is only about the size of Pahang is the world's second largest food producer after the US.

The Government has taken cognisance of this and is making efforts to exploit Malaysia's potential in food production and slash its huge food import bill. The Agriculture and Agro-based Ministry has already taken steps to overturn this food deficit by 2010.

One of the many sub-sectors identified under the food products category is the rearing of cattle and livestock for meat and dairy products.

Under the National Meat Policy (ruminant sector), Malaysia - which has almost one million cows and buffaloes - aims to increase that to 1.6 million in 2015.

This will increase Malaysia's self-sufficiency in meat products to 40 per cent from 25 per cent currently. India and Australia have a self-sufficiency of over 70 per cent.

Furthermore, the rearing of cattle for meat alone is a lucrative venture. Fetching an average price of up to RM2,000 per head, 200,000 cattle means a revenue of RM200 million.

This does not include the sale of dairy products and cow/buffalo bulls, which are priced at RM5,000 a head, or other livestock such as goats, sheep, chickens, ducks and deer.

Indian beef can fetch a price of RM8 a kg, while Australia's fresh meat prime cuts can hit RM18 a kg. Malaysia's per capita consumption of meat is 4.7kg a year.

Initially, it was thought that Malaysia did not have huge grazing fields like the cattle ranches in America.

But the large tracts of land owned by plantation companies could serve more than one purpose: to produce commodities such as rubber and oil palm, and used as grazing fields. Between them, Malaysian plantation companies own almost four million hectares.

In fact, some of the plantation companies are already helping the Government in efforts to convert the country into a net food producer instead of a net importer.

Cattle rearing activities among plantation companies in the country have been spearheaded since the 1980s by the Federal Land Development Authority, or Felda, managed by Felda Farm Products Sdn Bhd and the Rubber Industry Smallholder Association (Risda) and Tradewinds Corp, a company linked with Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary.

Experts say cattle rearing is an excellent way to control weeds, while their dung is a natural fertiliser. Fears of soil being uneven and not compacted (due to cattle movement) are unfounded.

One company which has set its sights on rearing cattle in a big way is the government-linked Golden Hope Plantations Bhd, which now owns 3,500 cattle heads reared on its 22 estates nationwide, or what amounts to 20 per cent of its total landbank of 200,000ha.

Out of the 3,500 heads, 1,400 are owned by third parties or smallholders.

Golden Hope director of plantations for Peninsular Malaysia, Mohd Zaki Che A. Kadir, said it started rearing cattle among oil palm trees in 1999 with an initial stock of 300 female breeders and 15 bulls.

The company rears the local Kedah Kelantan breed which are mated with the Nelore bulls from Brazil.

"Initially, we were reluctant and sceptical to rear cattle ourselves due to fears of uneven soil compaction and formation of mud puddles.

"Harvesters also do not want to collect loose palm oil fruits (which has the highest oil content) among the cow dung, but now we are beginning to see the benefits," he said.

Mohd Zaki admits that it is ideal to rear cattle among oil palm trees where the herd is systematically moved from one plot of land to another to graze.

"We manage to save on upkeep cost because we do not need to spray insecticides to kill the weeds, which are eaten by the cows. We cut down cost by 20 per cent, or a saving of RM800,000 for Golden Hope," he said.

Golden Hope senior controller for strategic development, Mohamad Samat, said the company's venture is in response to the Government's call to the private sector to take an active role under the Third National Agriculture Policy.

"Malaysia also practises the 'pawah' system under which the Veterinary Services Department loans the bull to smallholders so that it can mate with the female breeders. No capital is needed to buy the bull," said Mohamad.