The Ministry of Agriculture has issued an order against the release of 950 metric tonnes of soya feed contaminated with Salmonella typhimurium, which is on board the vessel Myra, moored midstream of the Demerara River.
According to a press release from the ministry, the soya was mixed and loaded into hatch #5 of the Myra to be delivered to a company producing food for animals.
The Agriculture Ministry’s Quarantine Department issued the order after the Guadeloupe Prefecture ordered the withdrawal and destruction of the batch of soya on Myra, which was tested and analyzed by laboratories there.
The ministry, together with the Guyana Revenue Authority, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Legal Affairs, is working on the matter, the release said.
According to sources, the soya feed was transiting Guadeloupe when the laboratory tests were done but it is not clear if the soya feed was meant for Guadeloupe.
One source believes that the feed was meant for Guadeloupe’s poultry industry and after it was found to be defective it was being sent back to Europe to be destroyed. The vessel is reportedly here to pick-up an export commodity, but this could not be confirmed.
Stabroek News has also learnt that the only way the captain of the boat will release the contaminated soya feed to anyone here, is if the Guyana government signs a letter stating that it has full knowledge that the feed is contaminated with Salmonella.
The Agriculture Ministry was alerted after the Foreign Affairs Ministry received correspondence from Guadeloupe, according to a reliable source. This newspaper was also told that authorities here learnt of the vessel’s existence over the weekend.
Last year, poor quality feed left many chickens stunted and of low weight, contributing to a 10%-15% shortfall in production, along with millions in losses for small poultry farmers across the country. Last year it was also pointed out that the feed had a protein deficiency. Large animal feed mills that supply the local poultry industry have experienced shortages of soya, corn and other ingredients for animal feed production over the years, leading to low feed supply and ultimately starvation deaths on many poultry farms.
Farmers often substitute rice and molasses to ease losses during periods of low quality feed or short supply. (Nicosia Smith)
