The Selangor government has decided to cancel the pig farming project in Bukit Tagar, Hulu Selangor, and will postpone it temporarily until an alternative site or more suitable method is identified.
Selangor Menteri Besar Datuk Seri Amirudin Shari said the decision was made by the State Executive Council (MMKN) last week after the Chairman of the Infrastructure and Agriculture Committee, Datuk Izham Hashim, reported strong opposition to the project.
“Even before Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim suggested halting the project, MMKN had already directed us to find alternative locations due to the strong protests in Bukit Tagar. I welcomed the PM’s recommendation,” he said after the 2026 New Year’s Address at Dewan Raja Muda Musa.
Amirudin acknowledged that the state government had announced the plan too early, sparking public debate. “The issue was somewhat premature because nothing had been finalized, but it appeared as if construction was imminent. We learned from this that engagement with local stakeholders should have been done first,” he added.
He explained that Anwar had personally suggested the project be canceled during a phone call while Amirudin was abroad for a government agency retreat. The Bukit Tagar project was initially planned to address longstanding pollution issues in Tanjong Sepat, Kuala Langat.
“We followed the PM’s advice because the matter had escalated beyond reality. It’s better to cancel and postpone it temporarily until we can identify an alternative site or method,” he said.
Last Friday, the Prime Minister said that the Cabinet’s weekly meeting agreed the project raised environmental concerns and public anxiety among local communities, warranting careful attention.
The controversy traces back to January 12, when Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah expressed displeasure over plans to allow large-scale pig farming in Tanjong Sepat, Kuala Langat, initially slated to start this year and later move to Bukit Tagar in 2030.
The Sultan highlighted concerns about the potential scale and export-oriented nature of the project, as well as the presence of a large Malay community in the area, noting that issues related to pig farming in Kuala Langat have yet to be fully resolved since 2010.
