Recently, in a major crackdown on illegal meat trade, the Islamabad Food Authority raided a plant in Tarnol and seized about 1,000 kg of donkey meat and arrested a Chinese national. A lot of hue and cry erupted and at the same time, social media had a grand time posting reels on TikTok and humorous memes on WhatsApp.

But this event was nothing to joke about. For Pakistan, donkey hides and donkey meat are important non-traditional export items because there is a huge market, especially in China.

According to Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, Pakistan has a donkey population exceeding six million and hence there are significant opportunities to tap into the hides and meat export market. The sad fact is that nearly all donkey slaughterhouses are basically unregulated and unregistered, and this casual attitude leads to unhygienic donkey meat that is usually sold to informal meat shops, micro food stalls, and at times even to small restaurants. Donkey meat is cheap and becomes an attractive moneymaker for unscrupulous people.

Pakistan has emerged as the largest exporter of donkeys, and this can further increase the country’s export figures. During the visit of Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang, Pakistan and China signed a protocol under which Pakistan would annually export meat and hides of, as well as live, 200,000 donkeys.

This figure should be taken seriously, and it is incumbent upon the government to set in motion the framework and protocols to regulate the donkey business. The illegal donkey business must be immediately stopped, or else Pakistan would lose this lucrative export business as well as negatively impact on the reputation of the country. However, there is still hesitation in planning and approving locations of the donkey slaughterhouses.

The donkey slaughterhouses must operate and be fully compliant in accordance with the law and under comprehensive regulatory oversight.

There are many official certificates and approvals from various authoritative government bodies including NOC for donkey slaughter issued by the Ministry of National Food Security and Research, farm and slaughterhouse registration certificates, NOC from the religious institutions, environmental compliance certificate from the relevant Environmental Protection Agency, and international certifications such as HACCP and ISO.

These documents comprehensively cover environmental protection, hygiene, religious compliance, food........

© Business Recorder