The Minister of Livestock Development, Idi Mukhtar Maiha, has said appropriate ICT data and relevant applications capturing the history of animals are needed to close the gap in managing animal health and traceability in line with global best practices.
Speaking while responding to a team of livestock production specialists from Protein Trail Limited, who paid him a working visit in his office in Abuja today, Maiha emphasised that information and communication technology(ICT) is key to enhancing animal production and traceability in the country.
The Minister assured the team of the Ministry’s full support in terms of land acquisition for ranching, feed and fodder, and breed improvements.
‘I commend the company for its efforts towards transforming the livestock sector,’ he added.
On his part, the Executive Director of Protein Trail Limited, Olaseni Salako, pointed out that the new application being developed by his company contains information on animals from birth to slaughter weight; ‘records in terms of colour, health history, and vaccination, among others,’ he explained.
In his words; “Through the use of the app, animals can be traced up to the point where they were slaughtered.
“All animals must be tagged in order to trace where they are coming from and to ensure that they have veterinary certification for disease control.
“We should start tagging our animals and ensure that only standard abattoirs are allowed to slaughter them”
According to him, the move will stop cattle rustling, enhance acceptance in the international market, and help generate revenue through beef exportation.
Furthermore, Salako noted that the company is working towards developing a Quick Response Code for Animal Products to enable consumers to know the kind of dairy products they are buying.
