MLBA11: October / November 2009

 

 

 

 

Poultry production is character­ised by high turnover, driving livestock producers around the world to find innovative solutions to boost broilers' growth as shortening the rearing cycle raises productiv­ity, and ultimately higher profits. The common approach of the past in feed­ing antibiotics and growth promoters to the birds has since been banned in several countries.

 

Kee Song Brothers, a home-grown poultry production and processing company in Singapore, has chosen a road less travelled, as its decision to gradually phase out the use of these chemicals was reached years before its peers followed suit, as well as ap­plying innovation in raising poultry.

 

"In view of the serious implica­tions on human health, we feel it is necessary to progressively phase out the feeding of antibiotics and growth promoters to our poultries," said Kwek Theng Swee, chief executive of the group.

 

Kwek explained that the escalat­ing usage of non-therapeutic antibiot­ics as a type of growth promoter de­feats the original purpose of the drug which is to kill bacteria. Studies have linked antibiotics use in animal pro­duction to the emergence of antibiot­ic-resistant strains of bacteria in meat. Overuse of antibiotics in this manner could increase the risk of antibiot­ics resistance in humans, resulting in treatment failures of illnesses caused by these bacteria.

 

From its humble beginning as a family business that deals with poul­try wholesaling in the 1950s, Ong Kee Song, the eldest son of the fam­ily, later took charge and established Kee Song Brothers Poultry Industries Pte Ltd in 1975.

 

Since then, it has evolved into a group enterprise with two companies in Singapore and six in neighbouring Malaysia, employing about 300 work­ers in total.