Red Meat Forum Warns of FMD Threat & Price Pressure

The Red Meat Forum is urgently appealing to the South African government to handle imports of live animals from Namibia and Botswana with caution amid the current Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) outbreaks in these countries.

The Forum, an initiative of Free State Agriculture, expresses its condolences to farmers in Namibia and Botswana who are currently affected by FMD outbreaks. The Forum hopes that the governments concerned will take effective and targeted action to combat the disease and stabilize the situation as soon as possible.

Friedl von Maltitz, chairperson of the Red Meat Forum, believes that although the Namibian Agricultural Union has indicated that an agreement has been reached with South Africa on the export of meat and live animals from FMD-free zones, the possible import of larger volumes of livestock from the region raises concerns about the consequences for South African producers and local market prices.

“If large quantities of calves and finished cattle from Namibia and Botswana enter the South African market within a short period of time, this could lead to an oversupply and put significant downward pressure on local livestock prices. This could particularly harm producers, while the benefits could mainly accrue to buyers.”

Von Maltitz further says that the possibility of Namibia and Botswana increasing their exports to South Africa if other export markets become inaccessible due to FMD restrictions requires further caution. “The potential consequences for local producers must be carefully considered before any import decisions are made.”

Von Maltitz believes sheep producers could be particularly vulnerable. “According to the Red Meat Forum, more lambs have already been imported from Namibia this year than during the same period last year. Further increases in imports could put additional pressure on local producers.”

“South African livestock farmers have already struggled to produce profitably under difficult economic conditions for the past few years. FMD has further increased the pressure on producers. A significant drop in local livestock prices could have serious financial consequences for farms and the sustainability of the local red meat industry,” says Von Maltitz.

The Forum therefore urgently calls on the South African Minister of Agriculture to carefully consider any imports of live animals and red meat from the region.

Biosecurity requirements, the risk of disease spread and the possible impact of import volumes on the local market must all be taken into account.

The Forum emphasises that trade agreements and import decisions should not be made at the expense of the sustainability of South African producers. “Protecting local producers’ market access and economic viability remains essential for a healthy and sustainable red meat industry.”