‘Ostrich farming can reduce red meat market’

ISLAMABAD: Experts said ostrich meat has potential to take a significant chunk from the red meat market in the near future due to its nutritional value and almost risk- free farming of the bird.

Talking to APP, Veterinary Expert Lt Col (retd) Maqsood ur Rahman Qureshi on Wednesday said Ostrich farming is now an international industry and the propensity to go for low calorie foods has forced the health conscious to opt for this meat, as it is available on affordable rates of Rs250/kilogram.

Maqsood said ostrich was being farmed for around 150 years in South Africa, first for its feathers and recently for the hide and now for its meat, playing a key role in uplifting the economy.

“The increased demand of ostrich meat over the past few years in Pakistan has given way to rearing birds under controlled systems, as scientifically proven management practices resulted in low cost production and improvement in quality of the product,” he added. An Ostrich farmer, Asim Jaleel called it a great business opportunity for the poultry entrepreneur as many of them were switching to this newly introduced venture in Punjab because of high returns in terms of profit.

He said currently, ostrich producers only met 10 percent of the consumer demand globally, and urged to create awareness among farmers to shift from cow farming to ostrich farming. There are strong global markets for ostrich meat, eggs, feathers, leather and related products. Ostrich farming gives five times more return as compared to cow farming and is more cost effective, he added.

“The bird can be reared in a paddock along with sheep, goat and cattle as it needs no dipping, drenching, milking and shearing,” Asim said. Speaking about the cost of ostrich hide, he said it fetched Rs6,000/hide compared to a traditional cow hide, which was Rs3,000.

He reminded that the harsh climate of Pakistan was suitable to farm ostrich, as the bird had more resilience than other animals.

Asim said ostrich meat could be stir-fried like steak and has swamped restaurants in Europe, Japan, Australia and China in a big way, and Pakistan’s restaurant industry was fully capable to benefit in near future.