Malaysia Targets Antibiotics-Free Chicken By 2020

LUMUT, March 15 (Bernama) -- Malaysia hopes to produce antibiotics-free chicken by 2020, said Domestic Trade, Cooperatives and Consumerism Minister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin. Currently, all poultry farms are prohibited from feeding chicken with antibiotics seven days before slaughter to protect consumers. Hamzah said the mixing of antibiotics in chicken feed is to ensure that it does not contain any toxins. "We do not want antibiotics in our food," he told reporters after launching World Consumer Rights Day 2016, here today. This year's theme, 'Antibiotics Off the Menu' aims to prevent the use of antibiotics and drugs in livestock, including for disease prevention. Earlier, Hamzah spent about an hour visiting the processing centre of Dindings Poultry Sdn Bhd which is conducting research with a university in the United States on the use of antibiotics on chicken. "If this company can get good results from the research, we will promote their products across the country. "We will also work with the company to develop and increase the country's revenue," he added. -- BERNAMA

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