NFC beef more costly than wagyu beef

The cost incurred by the embattled National Feedlot Corporation to produce its brand of beef dubbed ‘Gemas Gold’ is apparently more expensive than the popular wagyu beef, according to a think-tank.

In a statement today, Research for Social Advancement (Refsa) said NFC’s Gemas Gold would cost around RM184 per kilogramme, taking into account what has been revealed by the Auditor General’s Report 2010.

The company, linked to UMNO Wanita head Shahrizat Jalil, has a vision of attaining 40 percent self sufficiency for local beef production by 2010.

However, it was ticked off by the Auditor General for producing only 3,289 cattle from the targeted 8,000 last year.

According to Refsa, as of 31 July 2011, a total of RM182 million had been channelled into NFC, which also obtained a big kick-off with RM74 million and 5,000 acres of land in Gemas.

“Wagyu cattle carcasses go for between RM30,000 to RM60,000 each. ‘Gemas Gold’ cattle cost RM55,000 per head as of 31 July,” said the group's Sandra Rajoo.

Wagyu beef, sometimes known as 'white beef', is so named as it originates from the 'Wagyu' cattle, first developed in Japan, but now mostly raised outside Japan. Its popularity has been attributed to the fact that its meat is tender, which makes it suitable for cooking steak.

"The NFC beef surely does not exhibit this fine quality but its cost of production exceeds that of wagyu. The bottom line is, we are paying super premium prices for purely run-of-the mill local beef,” explained Sandra, who also said the company had failed in its mission, and called on the government to take action for abusing public funds.

“Will it (the government) take the bull by the horns? Only with transparency and accountability can Malaysia develop,” she stressed.

Harakahdaily