Trashed quail eggs reportedly from S'pore farm

The more than 100 quail chicks found discarded in a rubbish bin on Oct 27 were discovered outside Singapore’s only licensed quail farm, Quailico Eggs, The Straits Times has learnt.

The Animal Concerns Research and Education Society (Acres) found the 106 live quail chicks in a green rubbish bin in Lim Chu Kang, along with hundreds of lifeless chicks and unhatched eggs. None of the live chicks survived.

The wildlife rescue group posted about the incident on social media on Nov 3, but did not disclose the location of the bin. 

Checks by ST showed that Quailico Eggs is the only quail farm licensed in Singapore. It is located in Neo Tiew Crescent. 

When ST contacted the farm on Nov 7, a staff member who answered the call confirmed that the quail chicks and eggs had come from the farm.

She said that the National Parks Board (NParks) was conducting an investigation and had checked the farm premises on the week of Oct 27.

Acres co-chief executive Anbarasi Boopal confirmed in response to ST’s query that the bin was located outside Quailico Eggs.

In response to follow-up queries, both the Singapore Food Agency (SFA) and NParks redirected ST to NParks’ original statement published on Nov 3.

In that statement, the agency confirmed it had received feedback on the alleged abandonment of quail chicks and was looking into the matter.

“We will take action against anyone who has abandoned their pet, failed to provide adequate care for it, or has committed an act of animal cruelty,” the statement added.

In its Nov 3 social media post, Acres said a person called its wildlife rescue hotline on the night of Oct 27 and reported hearing chirping sounds coming from the bin.

Acres later found a quail chick on a black rubbish bag inside the bin, which led to the discovery of the contents in the bag.

“We did not count the lifeless chicks and unhatched eggs because there were so many, possibly in the hundreds. We had to focus on those that were still alive,” said Ms Anbarasi.

Five of the live quail chicks discovered died on the same night. Despite efforts to save the others with warmth, fluids and syringe feeding, none survived.

“We believe that the chicks didn’t survive likely due to the injuries from being on top of each other, premature hatching and resulting stress. The rescued chicks were weak, most could not stand on their own, were wheezing and had abnormal position,” said Ms Anbarasi.

When she visited the site again on Oct 28, she found about five dead quail chicks on the grass by the roadside.

According to poultry farm licensing documents from SFA, farms must have a system for the proper disposal of dead birds, manure and other waste.

ST contacted egg farm Chew’s Agriculture to find out more about biowaste disposal protocols here.

Its director, Mr Edvin Lim, said dead poultry is collected by licensed waste collectors and sent to a National Environment Agency incineration plant. 

According to Quailico Eggs’ Facebook page, it sells quail eggs and meat.

The eggs are sold under the brand Egg Story, a label by local producer N & N Agriculture that promotes pasteurisation against salmonella and bird flu.

Former quail farmer William Ho, who operated Lian Wah Hang Farm till it ceased operations in mid-2023, posted about the incident on Facebook five days ago. 

When approached by ST, Mr Ho did not name Quailico, but he said he contacted Singapore’s only quail farm on the week of Nov 3 to remind them to be more careful and alert as the farm is located in a high traffic area.

As the former president of the Kranji Countryside Association, Mr Ho said he felt it was his responsibility to remind the farm that such incidents could harm the reputation of local farms.