Affiliations 

  • 1 Strategic Livestock Research Centre, MARDI
MyJurnal

Abstract

Population growth and rise in per capital income have influenced the demand for convenience foods and a meat protein-rich diet. The per capital consumption of beef which had increased from 3.89 kg in 1980 to 5.49 kg in 2006 (DVS, 2006/2007) had resulted in an increased in demand for beef at the rate of 6.2% annually. The local beef production although recorded a 2.5% increased over the last 10 years, is still unable to meat the increasing national demand for beef. In 2008, local production of beef is about 38,250 mt. could only meet about 26.7% of the national demand (DVS, 2008). The gap between supply and demand for beef is expected to widen in the next decades unless efforts is been made to accelerate local production. The lack of number of quality breeding stocks and unorganized breeding system had been the major factors that contribute to the slow growth of the local beef industry.