August 02, 2006	Wednesday	Rajab 6, 1427

KARACHI, Aug 1: Customs authorities have verified that meat meal being imported under the garb of fertiliser is coming from Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (Mad Cow disease) infected countries. Consequently, they confiscated consignments of the product.

According to official sources the customs authorities, after receiving information that some feed manufacturers in collaboration with few commercial importers are engaged in clandestine clearance of meat meal in the garb of fertiliser, kept a close watch on some consignments.

Consequently, the customs physically examined the goods and their samples were referred to the PCSIR laboratory to check the veracity of information of mis-declaration by importer(s) and their clearing agent(s).

The PCSIR test report confirmed that the consignment in question was not of fertiliser as declared by the importers, but of meat meal used in manufacture of poultry feed and classified under PCT heading 2301.1000 chargeable to customs duty at 10 per cent, sales tax at 15 per cent and income tax at 6 per cent .

Against this, on import of fertiliser there is only 5 per cent customs duty and it is exempted from sales tax and income tax. As a result of mis-declaration the national exchequer was being deprived of millions of rupees.

Above all, the consignments of meat meal had been imported from Italy whereas import policy 2005-06, do not allow import of meat meal from Mad Cow disease infected countries. According to paragraph 16-A (iii) of the policy, import of live animals, including cattle, buffalo, sheep and goats, meat and bone meal, tallow containing protein and feed ingredients from Mad Cow disease infected countries such as UK, Ireland, Belgium Canada, Denmark, Falkland, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Holland and Spain are not allowed.

The imported meat meal is used in the manufacture of poultry feed. Though it had been medically proved that consumption of meat or meat products from the infected animal can cause a similar disease in human beings known as Variant Creutzfeldy Jacob Disease (VCJD), which is a fatal disease. However, what effect it has on human beings on consuming poultry products nurtured on such feed is any body’s guess?

However, the most astonishing fact is that the PCSIR report has established that the imported meat meal contains ingredients or parts of pork (Haraam meat), which is in contravention of section 16 and 32 of Customs Act 1969.

The import policy 2005-06 also prohibits import of such goods under serial No 05 of appendix-A of the Negative list, which reads as: “Any goods containing ingredients or parts, which may be repugnant to the injunctions of Islam as laid down in the Holy Quran and Sunnah, including pigs, hogs, boars and swine, and their products and by-products.”

On confirmation of these facts the customs authorities confiscated the consignments(s) under section 156(I) (9) 14 (14) of the Customs Act 1969.