Savanna Beef faces FMD shock

Savanna Beef is facing its first major disruption just months after securing export certification, with Namibia's foot and mouth disease (FMD) outbreak threatening livestock procurement and access to international markets.

The producer-owned abattoir near Okahandja received its export certificate in July, marking a significant step for a project backed by about 730 shareholders and roughly N$400 million in investment.

Its business model is based on slaughtering weaners in Namibia rather than exporting them live to South African feedlots.

The company had planned to employ about 240 people when operating at full capacity.

However, two months after receiving its export certificate, Savanna Beef confirmed the FMD outbreak in a notice to the Namibia Securities Exchange (NSX).

It said it would try to weather the disruption.

For a new business with substantial fixed costs and limited operating history, the timing presents a significant challenge. Research firm Simonis Storm said Savanna Beef could be particularly exposed to a prolonged shutdown because of its high fixed costs and limited operating track record.

The outbreak also threatens the company’s efforts to establish itself in international markets after securing export certification.

Major setback

Cirrus Capital co-founder Romé Mostert, whose firm advised Savanna Beef before its incorporation, described the outbreak as a setback for the wider livestock industry.

“Today was a sobering day for Namibia's livestock industry,” Mostert said on 23 September.

“The confirmation of foot-and-mouth disease in our FMD-free zone affects every link in the value chain: the farmers and producers, the abattoirs and processors, the workers and their families, and the rural communities that depend on them.”

Mostert said Cirrus Capital had worked on Savanna Beef’s business plans and strategic structures and helped raise more than N$600 million in capital for the greenfield project.

“In a short time, Savanna has gone from an idea at the Beef Value Chain Forum to an EU-accredited export abattoir shipping Namibian beef to international markets,” he said.

“That was never about the capital alone. What has made Savanna the success it has been to date is the tremendous team of people behind it.”

Meatco recovery interrupted

The outbreak is also disrupting Meatco as the established processor was recovering from a difficult period.

In the year to January 2026, Meatco’s cattle throughput south of the veterinary cordon fence fell 53% to 35 594 head, while revenue stood at N$1.1 billion.

The company remained profitable and had cash reserves of N$128.3 million.

By the end of July, slaughter had recovered to more than 34 000 cattle, compared with 24 405 a year earlier.

Meatco had also taken over the unused portion of Botswana’s Norway quota, worth about N$100 million, taking its expected Norwegian exports for 2026 to about N$365 million.

Those exports, which need to be shipped by 31 December, are now at risk.

Meatco said it was too early to determine the full financial impact of the outbreak.

“The extent of any impact will depend principally on the duration of the control measures, the treatment of consignments already in transit and the timeframe within which livestock procurement, slaughter and access to export markets can resume,” the company said.

Meatco deputy chairperson Stephanie de Klerk said the company’s immediate priority was to comply with the national veterinary response.

“Our immediate priority is full compliance with the national veterinary response and supporting the authorities in containing the outbreak as quickly as possible,” De Klerk said.

“Namibia has built a strong reputation for the integrity of its animal-health and beef-export systems. Meatco will continue to act responsibly and transparently while the authorities undertake the necessary surveillance and control measures.”

Wider economic impact and what's at stake

Simonis Storm estimates that the outbreak could result in about N$1.36 billion in lost output across the economy in 2026.

Farms, abattoirs and the game sector account for about N$840 million of that loss, with the remainder spread across retail, transport, business services, utilities and financial services.

The research firm said the duration of the control measures would be the main determinant of the economic impact.

What is at stake?

In 2025, according to the ministry of agriculture, the livestock sector generated more than N$2.1 billion in foreign currency. It supports more than 45 000 direct jobs in primary production and a further 12 000 skilled jobs in export and processing.

Although most beef is consumed domestically, about 30.7% of production was exported between January and September 2025, highlighting the sector’s reliance on access to international markets.