MUI Proposal to Use Pleco Fish as Livestock Feed Deemed Risky

JAKARTA – The DKI Jakarta Provincial Government considers the Indonesian Ulema Council’s (MUI) proposal to utilise pleco fish as livestock feed to be risky for health. The fish is said to potentially contain heavy metal residues that could enter the human food chain. Head of the DKI Jakarta Food Security, Maritime, and Agriculture Office (KPKP), Hasudungan Sidabalok, stated that the heavy metal content in pleco fish needs to be wary of if used as feed for poultry or cultured fish. Regarding the method of disposing of pleco fish by burying them en masse, which has drawn criticism from MUI, Hasudungan admitted that his side faces difficulties in destroying the fish one by one, especially when the catch volume is large. “That’s true (difficult to destroy one by one). Incidents of burying large quantities of pleco fish are indeed hard to avoid, even though some are killed first before being buried,” Hasudungan said. Currently, the DKI Provincial Government is still seeking more appropriate methods so that the disposal process does not violate religious principles while still considering animal welfare. He said his side is coordinating with various parties, from academics, research institutions, practitioners, to the central government, to formulate the best solution. Previously, Secretary of the MUI Fatwa Commission, KH Miftahul Huda, assessed that the method of burying fish while alive contradicts sharia principles and animal welfare. He explained that burying fish alive violates two main principles, namely rahmatan lil ’alamin and animal welfare (kesrawan). That method is deemed to potentially cause unnecessary suffering to animals. Nevertheless, MUI views the DKI Provincial Government’s policy in controlling pleco fish or pleco as having maslahah value because it can protect the environment and river ecosystems. “That aligns with maqasid syariah, entering the category of modern ecological dharuriyyat,” said Kiai Miftah, quoted from the MUI website, Saturday (18/4/2026). “Pleco fish should be utilisable, for example, processed into fish meal. Then the fish meal can be used as a mixture for feed for catfish, tilapia, or other cultured fish,” he explained. In addition, the fish can also be used as poultry feed or processed into organic fertiliser through fermentation. According to him, such steps not only reduce environmental impacts but also provide economic added value. “I’m sure Mr Governor (DKI Governor Pramono Anung) already has experts on how to utilise that pleco fish,” he said.