April 1, 2009

Over 1,000 poultry farmers gathered in Taipei, Taiwan to protest in front of the Council of Agriculture (COA) Monday (Mar 30) against the government's planned ban on slaughtering poultry in traditional markets.

This prompted a COA official to say the government will continue to implement the policy to upgrade the domestic poultry slaughtering industry in order to improve food safety.

Huang Kuo-ching, deputy director-general of the COA's Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine, said slaughtering poultry in certified slaughterhouses was a modern trend and the government would assist domestic farmers face the impact of the new measures once the ban is implemented on April 1, 2010.

Traditional Taiwanese shoppers prefer their poultry to be slaughtered on the spot, a practice that raises health issues over possible outbreaks of bird flu, as well as concerns that the birds are not treated humanely during the slaughtering process.

Last March, COA passed a resolution to bar this old practice and to begin the ban in 2010.

The announcement triggered protests by poultry farmers who were concerned that their livelihoods would be affected as the new law would require them to have their poultry slaughtered at certified facilities.

To minimise the impact on small poultry businesses, the council has prepared a variety of measures such as offering low-interest loans to help businesses establish integrated production lines.

The council added that the government would help individual poultry farmers to adapt to the change in business practices.