Government to set up chicken waste rendering plants as PPP model ones are beset with issues

With the closure of several chicken rendering plants started across districts in the public-private partnership (PPP) mode following various issues, the Kerala government is now planning to launch such units in the public sector with the Clean Kerala company, Kudumbashree’s Kerala Chicken and Suchitwa Mission jointly operating them.

Minister for Local Self-Governments M.B. Rajesh has instructed the three agencies to carry out preliminary studies for the setting up of the plants, according to sources in the Local Self-Government department.

Raw material for animal feed

Five years ago, the Local Self-Government department and the Suchitwa Mission took the initiative to promote chicken waste rendering plants after the existing methods of processing it in biogas plants or handing over the poultry waste to pig farms were found to be ineffective. The rendering plants could process all the chicken waste, including the feather. The waste is steamed and cooked to be converted into powder form, and is used as raw material for making dog feed and animal feed.

Close to 40 such plants were opened in the initial years. Now only 14 are active, out of which nine are fully functional. A host of issues, including public protests, have plagued these plants. One of the biggest plants in Malappuram district, which has the maximum number of plants, was destroyed when a tree fell on it. Following this, the owners of the remaining plants attempted to increase the collection fee, leading to complaints from poultry owners. Some of the owners refused to run their plants to pressurise the government to agree to a fee increase. In Kollam district, one of the plants was closed due to public protests.

Funds

It is in this context that the government decided to open chicken rendering plants in the public sector. In the first phase, plants will be opened in districts which currently do not have one or those in which the existing plants are not functioning effectively. Two such plants are expected to be set up in Thiruvananthapuram, following which similar plants will come up in other districts too. Pooling of funds from local bodies in a particular area to set up a common facility is also being considered.

According to the Suchitwa Mission’s estimates in 2022, 1,080 tonne a day of chicken waste is being produced from the 16,000 poultry stores across the State.