By: Tri Satya Putri Naipospos (Animal Health Observer)

Indonesia has long planned to open cattle and beef import from countries other than Australia.

Early this year, plans to import beef from India were being drafted by the Jokowi-JK administration in the IX economic package. In India, when we say beef, what it actually refers to is water buffalo meat. Previously there was no law in India which prohibits the slaughter of cattle. Cows are considered sacred animals in Hindu. Prime Minister Narendra Modi rolled out a new law which was approved by the Indian parliament in March 2015. Since then, prohibition of cattle slaughter and beef consumption was increased throughout India.

Indonesia National Act No. 41/2014 as an amendment of Act No. 18/2009 states that with consideration to national needs, animal product importation is allowed from any FMD-free country or zone acknowledged by the World Animal Health Organization (OIE).

Trade restriction can be implemented not only through the presence of disease in exporting countries, but also domestic economy. Besides FMD, economic considerations including price, supply chain, and upstream and downstream sectors must become an integral part of an import scenario.

The cattle industry and farmers reject the plans to import meat from India. They think it is not the right solution to reducing the price of meat which continues to fluctuate in the country. There are concerns that importing meat from India will bring in FMD and cause major economic losses for the industry and farmers. The cheap price of meat from India, less than half of Australian meat, will make domestic products hard to compete.

Philippines and Malaysia

Let’s learn from the economic consequences faced by Philippines and Malaysia, two countries that have long imported meat from India. From 220 beef cattle farms registered in Philippines in the early 1990s, only seven are left. Sabah, which used to slaughter cattle every 3 weeks in early 1990s, never did it again after meat from India came in.

India is now the second largest exporter of water buffalo meat, supplying more than 20% of the world’s market and exporting to 65 countries. Asia takes more than 80% of buffalo meat from India, while Africa imports around 15%. Vietnam and Malaysia, both FMD endemic countries, are the two largest recipients with 52% of market share.

India has an enormous amount of livestock (199 million cattle and 108 million water buffaloes), however FMD is preventing the country from optimizing its participation in international trade. Indonesia which is FMD-free still has to work hard to increase the cattle population and production and maintain price stability to meet the national demand for meat. Although India is endemic for FMD, it has long set its sights on the market in Indonesia.

FMD virus serotype O, A and Asia 1 is responsible for FMD outbreaks in India. This condition is further worsen by the complex situation of FMD in India caused by free movement of animals between different regions. Since 2001 the FMD control program in India has shown overall improvement, proven by OIE acknowledgment in its general assembly in 2015.

For 40 years India has exported water buffalo meat to a number of countries and so far no outbreak has been recorded as a result of the import. Scientific literature states water buffaloes are comparatively more resistant to FMD compared to cattle. This scientific safety principle is closely guarded by the Indian government: export is allowed only for boneless meat without major lymphatic glands and pH less than 6.0, so the FMD virus will not be carried through export as required by the OIE. FMD introduction through frozen boneless beef or water buffalo meat has never been recorded; hence safe trade of meat imported from India is possible as long as it meets OIE standards. History shows that FMD can re-emerge in a previously free country through various ways. FMD introduction into Indonesia could happen not only through meat import, legal or illegal. Smuggling of Indian meat from Malaysia was caught numerous times at Belawan and Nunukan harbors.

FMD is a significant technical barrier to trade, but it should not be used to cover the inability of our domestic industry to compete with import. The profit of a trade should be balanced between calculating potential risk to human and animal health and its impact to market price or potential threat to the domestic industry.

The zoning system has been legalized, although it is still being challenged at the Constitutional Court. However it not the only safety tool to prevent FMD from entering our country. We should focus instead on properly analyzing the balance in meat supply and demand in Indonesia. Strategic planning is needed to measure the need for meat import as part of increasing Indonesia’s meat consumption target from 2 kg to 5 kg per capita per year.

The Indonesia government must be careful in their decision to ensure that the new source of meat will not cause new problems. This could be done by assessing both the risk of FMD (risk analysis) and socioeconomic impact of import.

Source: Kompas