Farmer: Don’t wreck industry

MALACCA: A pig farmer here is appealing to others in the industry to stop using beta-agonist in their animal feed due to the health risks.  

Federation of Livestock Farmers Associations of Malaysia's Malacca branch vice-chairman of the pig unit, Lim Oh Pah, 51, said he was speaking out on the matter as it could affect the interests of industry in the long run. 

Despite the risk of being criticised by his peers, Lim called on the federation to ensure that pork sold was free of the banned substance. He also urged the Veterinary Services Department to step up enforcement to check the abuse of beta-agonist.  

“I urge all pig farmers to stop using beta-agonist for short-term gains. If all consumers decide not to eat pork because of beta-agonist, that would be the end of the pig farming industry,” he added. 

On Thursday, Malaysian Pork Sellers Association chairman Goh Chui Lai claimed that about 70% of locally bred pigs were still fed with beta-agonist, used as a growth enhancer. 

In Petaling Jaya, Datuk Dr Lee Chong Meng said yesterday that the beta-agonist used in pig feed was “unrefined and high in dosage.” 

Dr Lee, who is MCA chairman for Traditional Agriculture and Agro based Industries Committee, urged the Health Ministry to go after animal feed producers who added the banned substance to their products and pharmacies which imported beta-agonist and sold it to farmers. 

“Only China and India are producing the drug. We don’t want Malaysia to be a dumping ground,” he said. 

Pig farmers, he noted, preferred to use beta-agonist which cost RM30 per tonne instead of Ractopamine, which cost RM120 per tonne. 

He also said pork that contained beta-agonist could be differentiated through its colour, texture and taste.  

“The normal uncooked pork is reddish, has about 2cm layer of fat, and the muscle is flexible when pressed. The cooked meat is succulent and tasty.  

“Pork with beta-agonist has less than 1cm fat and is dark red. It is tough and not elastic. It is also tasteless,” he explained. 

Dr Lee said that in the Klang Valley, 3,000 pigs were slaughtered each day and the official abattoir slaughtered 1,700 pigs.  

The rest were slaughtered in illegal abattoirs to avoid being caught for using beta-agonist, he claimed. 

“What are the local councillors doing about it? The enforcement is weak,” he said.