Festive season puts pressure on poultry producers
The poultry industry is doing its best to ensure that Namibian families will be able to have roasted chicken for a Christmas meal.
Namib Poultry Industries is pulling out all the stops to ensure that Namibians can eat chicken over the festive season, despite the constraints and challenges faced by the industry due to the ban on imports from South Africa.
Still, the company is asking customers to keep the current situation and challenges in mind.
“Namib Poultry Industries remains committed to supplying local customers with the same volumes as in the past, and we ask that customers have some empathy and understanding towards the current situation in terms of the market's supply of chicken and the far-reaching effects of this bird flu,” spokesperson Ashante Manetti said.
She explained that production has been improved to current world standards and as result Namib Poultry Industries currently produces in the region of 450 tons of poultry meat per week, and 1 950 tons per month multiplied by 4.33 weeks per month.
The ban on all chicken products from South Africa was put in place in October, after the South African was hit by a strain of bird flu, which placed the local chicken in industry in a challenging spot.
“Namibian importers thus had to change the origin of imported chicken meat from South Africa to either Europe or Brazil,” Manetti explained in the press statement.
As a result the supply chain of poultry products became longer, but importers were granted additional import quotas in order to compensate for the import change of origin.
Manetti said the import tonnages were increased to the maximum for November and December 2017 in order to meet the expected peak in demands during the festive season.
She assured customers that Namib Poultry Industries' production has remained steady and the company is still producing and supplying the Namibian market with the same amount of chicken products.
Nevertheless, Namib Poultry Industries cannot produce more than what is currently produced “as it is running at full capacity” but remains committed to supply consumers with the same volumes as in the past. She did point out that in line with commitments to Namibia and its growth, and in order to address food security, the expansion of chicken production in Namibia “is a necessity, as Namibia cannot rely, at all times, on the importation of South African products.”
The company believes that it is critical for food security that “both formal and informal sector poultry production expands. Namib Poultry Industries thus remains committed to SME development through its skill sharing initiatives with small scale chicken farmers and producers.”
There have been no new infections of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in the Western Cape.
Reports from South Africa at the end of November noted that no new infections of bird flu had been reported in the Western Cape since 18 October.
Alan Winde, the Western Cape's minister for economic opportunities, said that as the infection rate had begun to taper off, the industry was devising proactive risk management plans for potential future outbreaks.
It was reported that around 2.8 million commercial poultry birds had been culled as a result of the outbreak.
Bird flu had spread in the Gauteng, Mpumalanga, North West, KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape, Western Cape and Free State provinces.
Laying farms have been affected the worst, with the Western Cape accounting for the majority of cases.
The Western Cape estimated that the long-term financial impact is likely to be around N$4 billion.
Statistics indicate that while Namibia's poultry industry has grown over the past few years, by 2013 it only produced 12 480 tons of chicken meat.
The Namibian Poultry Association earlier this year said that local consumption is about 2 500 tons per month, of which it can supply between 1 800 to 1 900 tons per month.
In 2013, Namibia produced 2 300 tons of eggs locally.
JANA-MARI SMITH
Still, the company is asking customers to keep the current situation and challenges in mind.
“Namib Poultry Industries remains committed to supplying local customers with the same volumes as in the past, and we ask that customers have some empathy and understanding towards the current situation in terms of the market's supply of chicken and the far-reaching effects of this bird flu,” spokesperson Ashante Manetti said.
She explained that production has been improved to current world standards and as result Namib Poultry Industries currently produces in the region of 450 tons of poultry meat per week, and 1 950 tons per month multiplied by 4.33 weeks per month.
The ban on all chicken products from South Africa was put in place in October, after the South African was hit by a strain of bird flu, which placed the local chicken in industry in a challenging spot.
“Namibian importers thus had to change the origin of imported chicken meat from South Africa to either Europe or Brazil,” Manetti explained in the press statement.
As a result the supply chain of poultry products became longer, but importers were granted additional import quotas in order to compensate for the import change of origin.
Manetti said the import tonnages were increased to the maximum for November and December 2017 in order to meet the expected peak in demands during the festive season.
She assured customers that Namib Poultry Industries' production has remained steady and the company is still producing and supplying the Namibian market with the same amount of chicken products.
Nevertheless, Namib Poultry Industries cannot produce more than what is currently produced “as it is running at full capacity” but remains committed to supply consumers with the same volumes as in the past. She did point out that in line with commitments to Namibia and its growth, and in order to address food security, the expansion of chicken production in Namibia “is a necessity, as Namibia cannot rely, at all times, on the importation of South African products.”
The company believes that it is critical for food security that “both formal and informal sector poultry production expands. Namib Poultry Industries thus remains committed to SME development through its skill sharing initiatives with small scale chicken farmers and producers.”
There have been no new infections of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in the Western Cape.
Reports from South Africa at the end of November noted that no new infections of bird flu had been reported in the Western Cape since 18 October.
Alan Winde, the Western Cape's minister for economic opportunities, said that as the infection rate had begun to taper off, the industry was devising proactive risk management plans for potential future outbreaks.
It was reported that around 2.8 million commercial poultry birds had been culled as a result of the outbreak.
Bird flu had spread in the Gauteng, Mpumalanga, North West, KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape, Western Cape and Free State provinces.
Laying farms have been affected the worst, with the Western Cape accounting for the majority of cases.
The Western Cape estimated that the long-term financial impact is likely to be around N$4 billion.
Statistics indicate that while Namibia's poultry industry has grown over the past few years, by 2013 it only produced 12 480 tons of chicken meat.
The Namibian Poultry Association earlier this year said that local consumption is about 2 500 tons per month, of which it can supply between 1 800 to 1 900 tons per month.
In 2013, Namibia produced 2 300 tons of eggs locally.
JANA-MARI SMITH
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