Kota Kinabalu: Deputy Agriculture and Food Security Minister Chan Foong Hin hopes Sandakan pig sellers will reconsider their plan to raise the price for commercial whole pigs.
“I hope the price will remain at RM20 per kilogramme as this was the price set during the recent Christmas season,” he said in a statement, Saturday.
He also said he will be meeting Domestic Trade and Living Costs Minister Datuk Salahuddin Ayub next week to ensure that the pork price does not surge during the Chinese New Year festive season. Chan noted that majority Sabah pig farmers have been severely affected by the African Swine Flu (ASF) over the last two years.
“Many pig farms have no choice but shut down due to huge losses. Unfortunately, until today there is no vaccine to solve this epidemic.
“If any district or farm has pigs diagnosed with AFS, all pigs in the district would have to be killed and buried. This is a huge loss to farm owners.”
Therefore, he said, the only way to resolve the shortage of pork supply in Sabah is to allow pork to be imported.
“From what I understand, the Sabah Government has approved 200 tonnes of pork to be imported to Sabah and it will be arriving before the coming Chinese New Year.
“These pork are not imported as whole pigs but frozen pork products. They are similar to imported packaged beef and lamb products in ordinary supermarkets,” he said.
