This is according to Dewald Olivier, Executive Officer of the South African Feedlot Association, who told OFM News’ Elsabé Richard that the appointment of a Ministerial Task Team on Animal Biosecurity, which was announced by Agriculture Minister, Thoko Didiza, means that the industry can now work more closely with government to tackle issues of animal health in the country.

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OFM News previously reported that Didiza appointed the task team in a bid to “find mechanisms and provide recommendations on a range of key decisions whereby a collaborative initiative between government and private sector through a public-private partnership (PPP) can be established to tackle the country’s animal biosecurity issues.

“The Task Team will also be responsible for issues which will include and not be limited to realistic strategies with the intent to have an outcome that can be implemented by affected stakeholders.

“Focus on the complexity of the overall animal and public health system in a “One Health” approach, liaise with technical task teams of African Swine Fever (ASF), FMD, and Avian Influenza (AI). It will consider the roles of provincial government laboratories and private sector laboratories in disease monitoring, residue tests, meat hygiene with emphasis on all stakeholders’ consideration.”

When looking at some of the highlights that SAFA experienced this year, Olivier says the past nine months of 2021 proved to be much better than 2020, by being more profitable. He, however, acknowledges that the industry is still recovering from the initial hard lockdown when the virus was first reported in South Africa in 2020.

Auctions, which is an important aspect of the livestock industry, were prohibited as the government banned the gathering of people.

Also, the association has seen great growth with memberships.

Furthermore, Olivier highlighted that another issue that the industry is currently facing is the number of state veterinarians that are at the industry’s disposal. He says veterinarians are of great importance to the industry as they not only help with the treatment of diseases but also assist in signing off permits for exports.

What could be a solution to this problem, Olivier says it is to redeploy graduates to areas where there is a need. “I think they are not utilised to their full capacity and private veterinarians indicated that they are there for assistance. So, we’ve got two groupings of veterinarians which we could utilise…”

With that being said, Olivier is optimistic about the future of the livestock industry in South Africa. He says that they are not only working closely with government, but the association is also working hand in hand with other organisations such as the National Emergent Red Meat Producers' Organisation (Nerpo) with the eye of taking the livestock industry to the next level.

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