KOTA KINABALU: Sabah is implementing a bond system worth 10% of the value of livestock under the State Ruminant Transformation Programme to ensure farmers do not sell breeding cattle and goats too early.
State Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Industry Minister Datuk Jamawi Jaafar said the bond aims to boost the programme, which has been in place for 10 years but has yet to produce a significant increase in cattle and goat numbers.
Under the new system, farmers must pay a bond based on the livestock's value and will get a refund after three years if they meet the stipulated conditions.
"The value of a cow is about RM16,000, while a goat is RM1,600. The bond payable is 10% of the livestock value for a period of three years.
"If these cattle are productive and produce two to three calves within that period, the bond will be returned to the farmers so they can expand their operations," he told reporters after receiving a shipment of 950 goats worth about RM1.6mil from Sydney, Australia.
Also in the shipment, which arrived at MASKargo at Kota KInabalu International Airport, were 140 head of Jersey Friesian dairy cattle.
Jamawi said a total of 395 head of dairy cattle have been allocated under the programme, with the remaining 255 head scheduled to arrive on Oct 27.
All livestock arriving in Sabah will undergo a week of quarantine at the Veterinary Services Department facility in Penampang before being distributed to eligible recipients from Oct 28, subject to compliance with quarantine standards.
He said the goat programme has two main objectives: to strengthen existing livestock farmers and to help oil palm smallholders increase income through the integration of livestock farming with oil palm cultivation.
A total of 19 farmers will receive goats, while the dairy cattle will be handed over to two entities, SLDB in Keningau and Desa Keningau, for management and breeding purposes.
Jamawi said the Jersey Friesian breed was selected because it is better suited to Keningau’s hot climate and has the potential to produce up to 30 litres of milk per day, compared with the current average output of about 14 to 15 litres daily achieved by the two recipients.
He said the government also prioritised animal welfare by using a special flight to transport the livestock, reducing travel time from Sydney to Sabah to about eight hours instead of eight to nine days by sea.
"Besides animal welfare, we want to ensure the livestock supplied are of good quality and capable of becoming productive breeding stock for several generations.
"The breeding potential of these animals can extend to seven generations. We want farmers to maintain and expand their livestock populations, not sell breeding animals after the first birth," he said.
In a related development, Jamawi said the government received 850 head of beef cattle worth about RM10mil the previous week and had started distributing them to successful applicants.
He said the total allocation for the livestock shipments, including beef cattle, dairy cattle and goats, amounted to approximately RM17mil.
The government is targeting a 40% self-sufficiency level (SSL) for ruminant meat by 2030, up from the current 25% for beef and 5.5% for mutton, while local milk production has already reached almost 100% SSL.
