After some clashes in the past year, Namibian and South African meat producers have buried the hatchet.
Lardus van Zyl, chairperson of the Red Meat Producer’s Organisation (RPO), attended the Namibian Livestock Producers Organisation (LPO’s) annual congress recently and called for closer co-operation.
Van Zyl highlighted that South Africa is a nett importer of meat and live animals and will experience a growing shortage in the next few years.
“It is vital to sustain a relationship of trust and understanding,” LPO chairperson Kay-Dieter Rumpf told Farmer’s Weekly. “We are in discussion with our colleagues across the border and have been for a while.”
One recent issue was a call for the boycott of Namibian beef by the KwaZulu-Natal chapter of the RPO after wild buffalo were found south of the Veterinary Cordon Fence. “Such issues, especially when played out in the press, can stir the industry,” said Rumpf.
“These fears are based on false assumptions and a lack of knowledge of what happens on this side. We had discussions and cleared up these misunderstandings. Our EU export status makes our system incredibly strict. We have very high standards compared to SA,” he said.
Rumpf added that the scandal where SA accused Namibian producers of smuggling last year had been referred to the Meat Board of Namibia. – Servaas van den Bosch
