PETALING JAYA: Chicken importers in Singapore have expressed concern over sourcing birds from different international locations after Malaysia banned the export of hen from June 1.
Despite suggestions by the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) for importers to activate supply chains to extend the import of chilled chickens from different sources or enhance the import of frozen chickens from suppliers aside from Malaysia, the importers mentioned delays in supply would still come up.
Reports by Singapore information company Channel News Asia yesterday quoted Singapore’s Poultry Merchants’ Association secretary Ma Chin Chew as saying that delays would still occur regardless of importers’ efforts to acquire different provides from international locations such because the United States or Brazil.
“Supplies will still be hard to come by, especially at such a short notice.
“Even if importers place their bookings immediately, the supply of chickens can only arrive in two months,” he mentioned.
The SFA is a statutory board beneath the republic’s Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment to supervise meals security and safety.
Ma added that the value of chilled chickens would inevitably go up as soon as the supply drops and demand continues to stay the identical.
“These are simple market forces and cannot be helped,” he mentioned.
Ma, who can also be the chief government officer of a hen supply firm in Singapore, mentioned enterprise income was anticipated to dip by 60% as soon as Malaysia’s export curbs had been enforced.
A poultry agency’s enterprise improvement head, James Sim, was quoted as saying that the time-frame for pivoting was too quick with an uncertainty over how lengthy the ban can be.
“As we are unsure whether the ban will be short-term or not, we have not made any decision yet and will work closely with the SFA on the next best course of action,” he mentioned.
He mentioned his agency additionally had no intention of sourcing from different international locations because it had primarily labored with farms in Malaysia.
“Chickens from countries such as the United States or Brazil are frozen and we only deal with fresh chilled chickens,” he mentioned.
Meanwhile, economists in Singapore had been quoted by Bloomberg as saying that curbs on hen export by Malaysia would see the costs of meals with hen content material rising in tandem.
Singapore’s Maybank Investment Banking Group economist Lee Ju Yee mentioned the ban would probably additional push up the value of hen, which had already risen 5.7% in April.
“Food inflation, too, will remain elevated at between 4% and 6% versus an average increase of 1.5% over the past five years,” Lee was quoted as saying.
Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp Treasury Research and Strategy head Selena Ling was quoted as saying that Malaysia’s transfer to curb its hen export was not insignificant.
“Although food comprises 21% of Singapore’s consumer price basket with meat accounting for just 0.1%, it does not make the move less significant.
“If it is persistent and more worryingly reflects on the protective measures by other countries over food security and inflation concerns, then it could result in a lose-lose scenario for all,” she was quoted as saying.
The SFA in an announcement on Monday mentioned it was carefully monitoring the state of affairs on imports from Malaysia whereas additionally working with importers to minimise the affect on the nation’s hen supply.
“While there may be temporary disruptions to the supply of chilled chicken, frozen chickens will remain available to mitigate the shortfall.
“We also encourage consumers to play their part by switching choices within and across food groups such as opting for frozen instead of chilled chicken alongside other sources of meat products,” it mentioned, including that roughly 34% of Singapore’s hen imports in 2021 had been from Malaysia, with virtually all imported as dwell chickens earlier than being slaughtered and chilled in Singapore.