Sarawak’s swine exports to Singapore a major breakthrough
KUCHING: The state exported its first batch of live pigs to Singapore yesterday with a shipment of 350 livestock.
Deputy Chief Minister and Minister of Modernisation of Agriculture, Native Land and Regional Development Datuk Amar Douglas Uggah Embas said this was a major breakthrough for Sarawak as we are now the second source market for Singapore, after Indonesia.
The firm, Green Breeder Sdn Bhd from the Pig Farming Area (PFA) at Pasir Puteh, Simunjan, had previously exported 90 metric tonnes of frozen pork since February 2015 on a monthly basis, marketing under a premium brand ‘Borneo Pork’.
“They need 1,200 live pigs per day to be sent to Singapore. That means now we have new market for our live pig and market for food products.
“This shows that we are on the way to achieving the Chief Minister’s dream of being a net exporter of food products,” he said when met after witnessing the loading of first batch of live pigs at the Kuching Port Authority yesterday.
This first consignment is hoped to be an eye opener to Sarawak farmers and enterpreneurs, Uggah said, as he expected more to step up and take part in making food products.
“Before any of this can be exported, it has to comply with stringent requirement by the Singapore government. One benefit of Sarawak is that we do not have foot and mouth disease, and must take advantage of this situation.”
He appealed to all farmers to take good care of their lifestock to be free from the disease.
Meanwhile, Green Breeder Sdn Bhd director Dr Ng Siew Thiam noted that after the first consignment, the company will send 200 live pigs daily to Singapore on a trial run.
“For this first batch, we are sending 350 live pigs and subsequently 200 per day. After the test run, it will be launched in Singapore in January 2018.”
He said that the trip by sea from Kuching will take 50 hours to reach Singapore.
Assistant Minister of Native Land Development and Tarat assemblyman Datuk Roland Sagah Wee Inn was present at the event.