Frozen poultry import ban is right call

THE ban on frozen chicken import is a step forward in the right direction towards boosting local production and import substitution.
Papua New Guinea has been feeding on imported frozen chicken for too long.
It’s about time we put a stop to the import and encourage increased local production.
We have talked about substitutes of imports on various products for a long time.
When will we actually implement what we capture on policy for many years?
It is impractical to continue importing frozen chicken and contemplate on developing the domestic poultry industry.
There has to be a sudden break in the supply chain such as the current ban which can trigger off alternative supply sources to come onto the market.
We have two sleeping giants in the poultry industry namely Zenag Chicken and Niugini Table Birds which have rationalised their production output and minimised capital input simply because there was influx of cheap imports of poultry products from abroad, particularly frozen chicken.
This ban gives the two giants opportune time to quickly increase production, increase capital investment to substitute the quantity of imports.
Zenag Chicken and Niugini Table Birds have been in business for quite long in PNG, with their expertise and technical knowledge they can invite other local companies to partner and take advantage of this ban by expanding their operations nationwide.
At the same time, they can assist in knowledge and skills transfer to set up local SME companies to go into that space to increase production capacity.
This is an ideal economic opportunity created for any local SMEs to flourish in the poultry industry.
Papua New Guineans should stop complaining about this ban on frozen chicken import because our Kina which is paid out to suppliers abroad is retained and this in turn increases foreign currency reserves to be used for chemicals, machinery and other products we don’t produce on shore.
Besides, chicken meat contributes to various lifestyle diseases and reduces average lifespan in humans and also can spread bird flu and other disease which can mutate and affect humans as well.
All in all, this ban is giving us a competitive advantage in both macroeconomic forecast and microeconomic spin-offs (SMEs).
The Agriculture Ministry and the National Agriculture Quarantine and Inspection Authority (Naqia) are highly commended for the collaborative decision in imposing this ban for the future good of the domestic poultry industry in Papua New Guinea.

Philip Ukuni