In a twist of what we could possibly refer to as ‘a government communique, the Chairman of the Jihad Special Task Force Tan Sri Annuar Musa has stated that the government has not decided whether to lift the ban on chicken export, contrary to an announcement made by Agriculture Minister Dato Dr Ronald Kiandee.
On August 4th the Minister said Malaysia had decided to lift the chicken export ban which was imposed to curb the domestic supply problem will be lifted come August 31, this news was welcomed by poultry farmers and our neighbour country Singapore which CNA carried as an important piece of the announcement.
The Chairman who is also the Communication Minister claimed the June 1 decision to ban chicken export policy remains in force and will continue until the supply stabilises. He added the priority is to ensure domesic needs are well catered for before looking at lifting the ban for export. On the price drop, Annuar said he is aware but also commented that policy like this cant is switched just like that but will have to be monitored over time including the whole supply chain.
Annuar also highlighted on certain groups could take advantage of the price drop to start exporting again without the concern of local supply needs which could lead to the problem recurring.
Poultry farmers who were rejoining on the lift will now need to refocus on keeping their business operational without the potential added income from export.
