Animal Husbandry and Dairy Development Minister J. Chinchurani has said the government will introduce a legislation to assess the quality of livestock feed and prevent their adulteration.
Low-quality feed being brought by private distributors from outside the State had been harming cattle and had contributed to an increase in diseases, Ms. Chinchurani alleged, while inaugurating a seminar series organised by Kerala Feeds Limited (KLF) on ‘Cattle feed: Quality, Price and Availability’ here on Tuesday.
Accusing private competitors in the sector of spreading canards about the cattle feeds manufactured by KFL and Milma among the farming community, she said the government-backed agencies upheld high quality in their products by utilising the best available raw materials.
She added both KFL and Milma had been instructed not to hike the prices of their cattle feeds till 2023. The entities had maintained the prices of such products since 2019 in order to prevent a further escalation of production costs incurred by dairy farmers. On the other hand, private companies significantly increased the prices of cattle feed during the period.
Elaborating on various initiatives being undertaken in the sector, Ms. Chinchurani said the government would soon issue health cards and tags for cattle to facilitate livestock traceability, maintain their health records, and expedite service delivery. The project was being piloted in Pathanamthitta and would be later extended to other parts of the State.
The government would also support farms growing silage, a high-moisture fodder, that is known to improve productivity. Moreover, steps were being adopted to ensure the availability of semen for high milk-yielding hybrid cows, the Minister added.
She also stressed on the role of fodder promoters and women cattle-care workers in finding more takers for KFL’s high quality feeds and thereby generating more income.
Animal Husbandry Department joint director (planning) K. Sasikumar presided over the programme. KFL managing director B. Sreekumar and marketing manager B. Jayachandran also spoke on the occasion.
