Pretoria – Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development Thoko Didiza has met industry stakeholders to discuss several challenges facing the livestock industry following the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease.
Didiza’s engagement with industry role players focused on the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, which has spread from Limpopo to KwaZulu-Natal, North West, Gauteng, and the Free State.
She sought to assure the industry that the government is doing all it can to address the outbreak in South Africa.
“I will intervene personally on some of these matters to ensure that they are resolved,” Didiza said.
She told the industry that slaughtering and culling have been implemented in areas such as Gauteng and the same approach will be taken in the North West and Free State.
“An urgent meeting will be held with the premier and relevant MECs in Limpopo next week to ensure swift and appropriate actions are put in place to stem and contain the diseases in Limpopo,” Didiza said.
“KwaZulu Natal team has been meeting with the industry in order to undertake quick surveillance after the floods to ensure that we contain the disease in the disaster management area.”
Didiza also promised to release the recommendations report from the ministerial biosecurity for animal health technical task team before the end of the month.
“Let me make it clear that there will be zero tolerance on unlawful movement of cloven-hoofed livestock from infected areas or properties. I want to reiterate that traceability is a joint venture which must be driven by the industry and LITS SA (Livestock identification and traceability systems in South Africa) for implementation” she said.
Foot-and-mouth disease has a major impact on trade in livestock and livestock products but has no impact on human health.
The ministry of agriculture, land reform and rural development said the meat from animals slaughtered at an abattoir where the necessary inspections are conducted, is safe to consume.
Amid the outbreak, the importance of the public-private partnership between government and the industry was also discussed at length and the importance of the provincial animal health forums to take part in the driving of solutions for the foot-and-mouth outbreaks in each province was also reaffirmed.
The National Animal Health Forum and Red Meat, and Livestock Primary Cluster, industry stakeholders and the government committed to working hard to curb the disease from spreading.
IOL