Brunei Studies Export Prospect of Poultry

Bandar Seri Begawan - Poultry production in Brunei has been steadily on the rise over the past 15 years, giving rise to talks about exporting chicken.

'We are planning to do so (export chicken) because of the potential that Brunei has," said a source from the Agriculture Department. "We are now in negotiations with Singapore on how to start exporting. However, we must comply with all Singapore requirements first, such as their biosecurity measures, legislation and so on."

Of the total consumption of chicken in Brunei, domestic production accounted for only 32 per cent in 1992, but this soared to 61 per cent in 1997 and 76 per cent in 1998, according to official government statistics.

In 2006, local poultry farmers grabbed 95.6 per cent of the domestic market for chicken products.

Local chicken farmers appreciate the government's efforts to make the export ambition a reality, but there remain a number of challenges to overcome.

Brunei indeed has the potential to export chicken.

An expert from the industry says that he feels that there is a possibility of poultry export, said a general manager of one of the leading chicken farms in Brunei. However, Brunei cannot compete in terms of pricing, he said, requesting not to be named.

"Some of the major exporters of halal chicken are Brazil, China and Thailand, and the landed cost that Brazil had a year ago when exporting to Jeddah was about $2.62 (per kilogramme)," he said.

"Our production cost is already about $2, excluding shipping and other related costs. With the mean rates of import being 15 per cent of the (export) cost of the product, our total cost per kilo not including profit is about $2.99. So how can we compete?" he said.

The negotiation process with Singapore has not yet reached the stage where costs are discussed, but most likely this will be taken up between the exporter and the buyers in Singapore, the source from the department said.

Asked if pricing concerns will stand in the way of exporting chicken, the source said: "Export is not out of the question but we are still exploring the niche market and the means (to achieve that) ... possibility.

"We can try to export, but not to the mass Muslim market of the Middle East. We can target European countries like the United Kingdom or France, where the spending power is higher, but with that also comes challenges," he added.

"To fully comply to halal standards, the animal has to be alive when slaughtered. However, EU standards do not allow animal slaughter due to their strict animal rights stance," he said, adding that EU standards require poultry to be stunned before slaughter.

"Another EU standard that we must comply with before we are granted the right to export to Europe is that EU standards do not allow the import of poultry that has been fed antibiotics," he said. It is a common practice in Brunei and many countries to use anti-biotics on their livestock to heal sick animals, he added.

"We restrict the intake and the dosage according to the age and the livestock is given a withdrawal period before they are slaughtered, but Europe prohibits the use of anti-biotics completely," he said.

The price of producing chicken locally has started to increase due to increases in chicken feed prices.

'We are currently absorbing the cost of producing chicken locally because the government says that if we increase the price of chicken according to the price of chicken feed then they might start to allow imports again," he said.

The price of feed went up by 40 per cent from $25 per 50kg in January 2007 to nearly $40 per 50kg now.