Abu Nayeem Mohammad Saifullah Bhuiyan
Managing Director,
HLF Group & Managing Director Halal Laham Foods (Pvt) Ltd.
Basically we are working to ensure halal and Fresh food for Bangladesh. Also emphasis to reduce the price of meat so that people can consume easily.
Bangladesh has the potential of achieving cattle meat sufficiency by 2021 with the growing trend of cattle farming and the government’s initiative to boost its productivity by increasing artificial insemination and crossbreeding, reports UNB. Officials at the Department of Livestock Services (DLS) said they also have a target to attain autarky in milk within a decade by upgrading the local cattle heredity.
They said although the number of cattle, including cows and calves, is rising, the country has not so far been able to meet the demand for cattle meat and milk.
Under the circumstances, the officials said, they have taken various steps, including crossbreeding local cattle with high-yielding Brahman species for boosting meat production and upgrading local cows with Friesian variety using artificial breeding technique for milk production to eliminate the current protein deficiency.
“We’ve not only met the demand for sacrificial animal with local cattle, but also there was a surplus supply of over 14 lakh cattle this time. The country is unlikely to face cattle shortage or depend on other countries during the Eid in the future,” said DLS Director General Ajay Kumar Roy.
He also said the supply of Indian cattle at different markets, including the capital, during this year’s eid was insignificant.
DLS deputy director DrAinulHaque said the country now has a total of 5.44 core cattle population, including 2.53 crore cows and buffalos and 2.91 crore goats and sheep.
He said a total of 1,04,02,670 cattle, including 48,20,520 cows and buffalos and 55,82,150 goats, sheep and other cattle, were slaughtered during the Eid-ul-Azha celebrated in the country on September 13 while the country had a stock of 1,14,50,000 cattle. AinulHaq said the country now annually produces 61.52 lakh metric tonnes of all types of meat against its demand for 70.52 lakh metric tonnes (150 gm/per day/ per head) while the country produces 72.75 lakh metric tonnes of milk against its demand for 146.91 lakh metric tonnes (250 ml/per day/ per head).
Besides, he said, there are 32.06 crore poultry, including chicken and duck in the country. Ajoy Roy said, “We’ve set a target to fulfill the deficit of 9 lakh metric tonne of meat by 2021, but we’ve a prospect to achieve it before our target. We’re now exporting meat to different countries on a limited scale. We hope we will be able to increase it notably after 2021.” He, however said it will take nearly a decade to attain autarky in milk production as the there is now 74.6 lak metric tonnes deficit now.