Centre's ban on sale of cattle for slaughter to adversely affect public meat products company in Kerala

Kochi: Amid a public outcry over the Centre’s notification banning sale of cattle for slaughter, a public sector unit (PSU) in Kerala fears that its business will be badly hit for want of raw materials. The Meat Products of India Ltd (MPI), a meat and meat products manufacturing company in Ernakulam district, sources materials mainly from Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka and if the rule is strictly implemented, there would be no movement of livestock including buffaloes, said one of its top officials. Ironically, the Centre’s move has come when MPI enhanced the capacity of its plant spending Rs 31.5 crore, Shaju Jacob, one of the directors of MPI said. “The new rule will put MPI in a crisis. Sourcing livestock will be a big problem,” Jacob said. [caption id=“attachment_3490739” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of a cow walking past a closed slaughterhouse in Allahabad, India. Reuters[/caption] The products of MPI are derived from young and healthy livestock and are processed using sophisticated technology to ensure high standards of hygiene, longer storage time and more nutritive value. He said the Centre’s decision will also affect MPI’s plans to export the products. “The MPI products manufactured under strict veterinary supervision from selected animals free from zoonotic disease would have got a huge demand from abroad, particularly the Gulf. Now that door seems to be closed with this decision,” Jacob lamented. Currently, MPI products are available with all leading supermarkets and cold storages throughout Kerala and other states. He said the MPI was seeking new ways to overcome the crisis. “Currently, we are running in losses to the tune of Rs 19 crore. We are seeking possibilities of encouraging farmers in local areas to rear the livestock for meeting our demand for the raw materials,” Jacob said. Established in the year 1973, the company holds a category “A” FSSAI licence for the manufacture and marketing of meat and meat products.