Encik Selamat, a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), had been the General Manager of Excel Poultry & Meat Sdn Bhd (EPM), a subsidiary of PCK Holding, since 2005. The set up was small and medium sized enterprise (SME) located in Kluang, Johor. In year 2008 his career track and had been smooth closing when the company he presently helmed faced operational crises. The “chicken run” saga pictured a case that was familiar in respect of management of SME industry, at the infant stage when there was a lack of focus on the important considerations for proper running of business operation.
THE MALAYSIAN POULTRY INDUSTRY
EPM was established in 1998 to carry on chicken farming and supplying of whole chickens to various outlets in Malaysia. The company was one of the members of the Federation of Live Stock Farmers Association of Malaysia (FLFAM). In august 2008, FLFAM issued a statement depicting a stark contrast in local poultry production costs between 2006 & 2008. FLFAM made a higher chicken price in order to protect producer earnings in the face of the feed cost hike. However when the seller of chicken in Malaysia markets did increases the retail price, some members of FLFAM complained that they had seen a drop in demand. STRONG CHICKEN CONSUMPTION IN DOMESTIC MARKET Malaysia had a history of self-sufficiency for chicken meat despite recording one of the world’s highest rates of consumption per person/year. In GAIN report (2000) on Malaysian poultry and products where the country was having one of the highest per capita consumption rates in the world for chicken (32.5kg) and eggs (298 units). So that, there is no dietary prohibitions and religious restrictions against chicken consumption, it was the most popular and cheapest source of meat protein among Malaysian. The domestic market was further intensified by the popular home-grown fast food chains such Marrybrown, Sugarbun, Nineteen O One and Ball Fastfood – all with chicken menus