The Federal Government has said it will soon end the slaughtering of livestock in uncontrolled environments across the country as part of efforts to modernise the red meat industry and position Nigeria for the export market.
The Minister of Livestock Development, Idi Mukhtar Maiha, disclosed this on Thursday in Kaduna at the official launch of Olam Agri’s TruValue Cattle Feed, a beef and dairy concentrate feed.
Maiha said the government had already commenced the development of modern abattoirs and would require animals destined for the market to pass through feedlots and meet prescribed standards before slaughter.
He said, “We are going to sustain the tempo to ensure that in the not too distant future, we will stop trading in live animals, and every slaughtered animal in this country must be done under the controlled environment of a modern abattoir.”
According to him, the government had already conducted groundbreaking ceremonies for two abattoirs and a mini abattoir in the Offa axis, while another facility under construction in Abuja would have the capacity to process 1,000 bulls and 3,000 small ruminants daily.
