Meat imports protecting against local industry from flourishing

As domestic livestock production has multiplied manifolds within the last decade, meat and dairy are now in surplus in Bangladesh. But imports are protecting against the local market from flourishing and exporting to meet up the demands of the burgeoning worldwide halal meat market, said industry insiders.

Practically 100% of the demand for sacrificial animals during Eid-ul-Azha has been met with locally reared livestock, according to meat traders.

In the last year or two, production volume surpassed the demand and made around 300,000 tons of surplus meat.

The twelve-monthly meat consumption demand in Bangladesh is 7.3 million tons, against that your country is producing 7.6 million tons, based on the Department of Livestock Offerings (DLS).

However, meat continues to be being imported from neighbouring China, Myanmar, Nepal, and India.

Importing meat from abroad is certainly hurting the domestic industry, said AFM Asif, CEO of Bengal Meat Processing Industrial sectors.

Furthermore, the leather sector might be badly hit if cattle rearing as an monetary activity loses attractiveness due to large scale imports, he added.

“As we've a surplus of meat, Bangladesh has infinite prospects for exporting to the global halal meats industry, which will probably be worth about $500 billion,” said Asif, who also network marketing leads Bangladesh Halal Meat Processing Industries Association.

With the ongoing livestock development growth trend, whatever surplus Bangladesh produces could be exported with necessary slaughterhouse capacity development, he added.

Currently, most poultry and red meat producers can produce around 50,000 tons of meat per year, he further said.

Since 2014, following the ban on Indian cattle trade, Bangladesh witnessed an enormous surge in livestock farming, specifically among rural youths looking for self-employment.

Furthermore, this sector involves 522,000 professional farms and 3.7 million households. Around 15 million persons are immediately engaged with livestock creation and indirectly it influences another 25 million persons, said Asif.

“When we have a surplus of meats and dairy, it isn't rational to import the product,” said Md Ahad Sardar, proprietor of Sardar Dairy and Cattle farm in Rajshahi.

To save the neighborhood livestock farmers, the federal government should facilitate the sector for export, he added.

Another livestock farmer, Bakhtiar Mahmud from Kishoreganj, said they are creating world-class meat on the country beneath the supervision of native livestock departments.

“If the import of cheaper sub-standard meats continues, we are affected badly and have to shut our farms,” he further said.

Retail meat seller at Azimpur Md Al Faruk reported that within their shop, they stopped offering imported meat as customers several times claimed that the meat top quality is not right as soon as prepared, the meat tastes completely different from local meat.

According to industry options, livestock industry-driven manure development is quite critical for the complete agriculture sector of Bangladesh.

Around Tk55,000 crore rolls in to the Bangladeshi market behind cattle and goat rearing activities, 70% of which transaction happens among the poor and ultra-poor population, according to Bangladesh Halal Meats Processing Industries Association.

Basic Manager of the Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation (PKSF) and livestock professional Sharif Ahmed Chowdhury stated imported meat will generate poverty among rural people, especially the agricultural entrepreneurs.