Cattle fattened in unscientific way pose serious health risk

Unscientifically fattened cattle are flooding the makeshift Eid markets in northern districts. This photo was taken from a cattle market in Nilphamari yesterday.Photo: STAREAM Asaduzzaman, Nilphamari

Most of the cattle brought for sale as sacrificial animals in the northern districts ahead of Eid-ul-Azha are fattened allegedly through harmful ways as a section of unscrupulous cattle traders ignore the scientific formula prescribed by Livestock Department.

As harmful processes to fatten cattle start several months before Eid-ul-Azha, the animals are affected with serious diseases, posing serious health hazard for consumers, experts said.

Fattening of cattle including different varieties of oxen is a common practice in the northern districts including Rangpur, Dinajpur, Nilphamari, Gaibandha, Kurigram, Lalmonirhat, Thakurgaon and Panchagarh.

The scientific method of fattening cattle is to feed right proportion of 2 to 2.5kg mixture of urea, molasses and straw (UMS) to the cattle daily for about six months, according to relevant officials of Nilphamari Livestock Department.

Small amounts comprising 1kg straw mixed with 700ml water, 225 grams of molasses and 30 grams of urea makes ideal UMS food for cattle fattening, district livestock office sources said, adding that the animal should undergo de-worming before this.

If the cattle are too weak then they might be given limited dose of vitamin B-12 injections, they said.

But high dose steroid injections are often pushed to cattle body to make them look fat and healthy as dishonest traders are out to earn windfall profit.

The animals are even given high dose hormonal and vitamin injections and fed harmful chemicals and high amount of urea.

“We never suggest using steroid, hormone, high dose vitamin injections or chemicals to fatten cattle,” said Dr Abul Hossain, Panchagarh district livestock officer.

After injection of steroid, the fluid is spread throughout the cattle's body to make them look fat, but the fluid is deposited in the animal's body and different diseases caused by excess vitamin and hormone injection may even cause its death.

Visiting different cattle markets in the northern region, this correspondent found that the artificially fattened cattle lack liveliness and energy. They become too tired to proceed even after walking a short distance.

"People can be affected with different deadly diseases like kidney damage, liver failure, gastric ulcer, diabetes, pancreas diseases, high blood pressure and skin diseases through consumption of meat from those diseased cattle. Long time consumption of such meat might have impact even on the future generation," Nilphamari Civil Surgeon Dr Anwarul Islam said.

"There is no specific law to prevent this unscientific practice. Moreover, there is no facility to test steroid in the cattle body in field level," Lalmonirhat District Livestock Officer Dr Siraj Ali said.