For Singapore, a pressing need to build up its food supply resilience

NUMEROUS studies show that chicken is the most popular and among the most consumed meats in the world today. But from Wednesday morning (June 1), Malaysia will no longer export some 3.6 million chickens a month overseas, with neighbouring Singapore among the countries most affected by the surprise ban.

When Malaysia Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob first broke the news last week, it sent everyone here from restaurant owners to hawkers and poultry farmers in a tizzy, as they had mere days to prepare for a massive shortfall in chicken and eggs.

According to figures published on the Federation of Livestock Farmers Associations of Malaysia’s website, Malaysia’s export of live birds amounted to 59.1 million in 2020, up from 40.2 million in 2007. Today, Singapore imports around 34 per cent of its chicken from Malaysia, with almost all brought in as live chickens which are later slaughtered and chilled locally. Other major sources for Singapore include Brazil (49 per cent) and the United States (12 per cent).