West Bengal's 'Haringhata' meat now exporting to Qatar, other countries

State minister for Animal Resources Development Swapan Debnath said thatthe meat will be exported to countries such as Kuwait, Hong Kong and Maldives

West Bengal has started exporting meat labelled with the state government-owned Haringhata brand to Qatar, ahead of the FIFA World Cup football tournament, officials said.

State minister for Animal Resources Development Swapan Debnath on Thursday said that besides Qatar, the state will also be sending goat and sheep meat from its processing centre in Haringhata -- owned by West Bengal Livestock Development Corporation to countries such as Kuwait, Hong Kong and Maldives.

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"We will be exporting meat to multiple countries, having received an approval from the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA)," he stated.

Debnath said that the department would urge its "agents" to push for a deal with the authorities responsible for food supply during the tournament.

"We have received a contract for exporting 1.2 metric tonne of meat. Around seven tonne will be sent in six batches in a month," the minister added.