A man who had been in quest of a profession with a difference finally had his passion landed in a commercial crocodile farm at Bhaluka in Mymensingh, the first in the South Asian region, reports BSS.
Mushtaq Ahmed, a university graduate, had browsed different professions, including one in UNHCR, but could not settle down anywhere.
He along with Mesbahul Huq, a pharmacist, then set up the crocodile farm, the Reptiles Farm Limited (RFL), at Hatiber village under Bhaluka upazila in Mymensingh district on a land of 15 acres.
While the project is Mushtaq's brainchild, it was Huq's investment that helped turn the dream into a reality.
The two entrepreneurs were aided in their maiden venture with technical assistance from SouthAsian Enterprise Development Facility (SEDF) and with financial support from the equity and entrepreneur fund (EEF) unit of Bangladesh Bank.
The RFL also got assistance from Southeast Bank Limited.
The duo brought 75 reptiles ranging from seven to 12 feet from Malaysia for commercial breeding of crocodiles for Tk 12.5 million (1.25 crore). Of them, eight died on way to the farm established in October 2004.
Talking to the news agency at their Lalmatia head office in the city Friday, RFL Managing Director and CEO Mushtaq said, "We have set up the farm with an aim to export over 5,000 pieces of crocodile skin annually and create a base for earning up to US$ 5.0 million by 2015."
Different countries, including France, Germany, Italy and Spain, have shown keen interest in importing crocodiles from their farm, he said, adding the farm is likely to export skins, meat and bones of 140 saltwater crocodiles next year.
"We are very much hopeful of exporting skins, meat and bones of at least 140 crocodiles from Bangladesh by December, 2009", Mushtaq said and expressed the hope that the number would go up to 500 within the next two to three years.
He said there is a huge demand for crocodile skins, meat and bones in Europe, America and other developed countries like Australia, Japan, Singapore and China, and charcoal made from crocodile bones is indispensable for the global perfume industry.
To meet this demand, more crocodile farms could be set up in the country, Mushtaq said.
But, he said, there should be a policy on launching this unconventional business, otherwise its future could be disastrous like our shrimp industry.
"We hope the government will formulate an exotic wildlife farming policy to facilitate exploration of this field, as the sector can make valuable contribution to our export basket", he added.
Mushtaq said the international price of a kilogramme of crocodile meat is about US$ 200, while a baby crocodile is expected to fetch $700 to $1,200.
He said the number of crocodiles at their farm now stood at 447 from 68 through rearing in the last four years.
There are now 32 ponds at the farm with 447 saltwater crocodiles. Of them, 380 are small and 67 big in size and the length of the biggest crocodile is 14 feet and the smallest is eight feet, he added.
"In the last four years, we have built special incubation facilities and other infrastructure for hatching eggs and raising baby crocodiles", Mushtaq said.
Currently, he said, the farm employs 10 full-time staff, who have been trained locally and internationally. As part of its human resources development programme, the RFL encourages all its employees to pursue higher studies at local universities, he said.
3 comments
Mr. Ahmed writes an emotional piece in a recent issue of New Age chronicaling his journey of starting the first crocodile farm in Bangladesh. While I support entrepreneurialism and his intentions of providing for Bangladesh a "national achievment," I draw the line when unethical acts are committed to achieve these goals.
Mr. Ahmed, who claims to have been a "guide" for the Sundarbans should have learned from that experience that the animals of the world and us human beings are meant to live in a peaceful co-existence together. And in achieving that peaceful co-existence, the burden is mostly on us, as we are the beings capable of making educated decisions before acting, as opposed to the animals, who act on instinct and only commit violent acts when fearful or hungry.
The animals that Mr. Ahmed is raising on his farm are not ours to brutally kill and transform into a pair of silly shoes for the sake of making money. The Pulitzer Prize winning author Alice Walker says it best: "The animals of the world exist for their own reasons. They were not made for humans anymore than black people were made for whites or women for men."
I question what Mr. Ahmed finds "fun" about running his exploitative business. Is it the long and cramped journey of the terrified animals that are are being transported from Malaysia to the foreign grounds of Bangladesh that Mr. Ahmed finds amusing? Or is it the bloody and cruel slaughter of these great beasts that Mr. Ahmed finds "fun"?
This is one business that the compassionate citizens of Bangladesh can do without. Running a business on the blood of innocent beings is definetely not a "national achievement," it is more of a "national shame."
Farah Akbar, USA
Forget animals, often people in Bangladesh can't afford to eat. One out of 3people in Bangladesh isn't even drinking clean safe water. I could care less if someone is breeding Crocodiles for commercial benefit, if 10 people can eat from it in a country where food is often hard to come by. I think it is great what he is doing, taking advantage of the opportunity to earn foreign currency at the same time provide with jobs. It's non sense how people talk about animal rights and so on while HUMANS are starving trying to get food.
There is a difference between farming and wildcaught animals. If we can eat chicken and there is no harm in it we can also eat crocodile meat that is produced in a farm.
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