The Meat Board of Namibia will exercise effective management of the importation of dairy and dairy products, as well as poultry meat and meat products, and overcome the legal challenges experienced over the past years.
This announcement was made by agriculture minister Calle Schlettwein when he proposed amendments to the Meat Industry Act of 1981, under which the Meat Board was established.
He said upon promulgation, the expanded legislation will be called the Livestock and Livestock Products Act; and the inclusion of poultry, dairy and related products will give powers to the Meat Board to regulate those subsectors to the benefit of local producers and consumers.
It is proposed that the board be called the Livestock and Livestock Products Board of Namibia in line with the expanded mandate which extends from meat products to livestock and livestock products, including poultry and its related products.
He said Namibia is a net importer of food in general and poultry, dairy and pork, in particular, and these products are part of a basic diet of households across all income levels.
"The growth of these sectors in terms of production volume is critical for reducing import reliance (heavily influenced by animal disease control measures internationally) and future imported inflation risk."
Schlettwein said the growth of local industry competitiveness is a prerequisite for long-term industrial sustainability and to ensure the maximisation of consumer demand needs without obtaining cheaper products elsewhere.
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Reliance on imports not only presents a food security risk, but also has associated economic and financial risks like imported inflation, exchange control and balance of payment risks, he said.
Schlettwein reiterated that Namibia's industrial strategy, Growth at Home, lays down value addition as a premise for initiating industrial growth and for creating jobs locally.
"Intensive agricultural industries such as poultry, dairy and pork represent opportunities for diversification, import substitution and improving the balance of trade.
"The inclusion of dairy and dairy-related products, as well as poultry and poultry-related products (including eggs), will greatly assist local producers," he told parliamentarians.
This would enable Namibia to develop its dairy and poultry industries through a pro-growth regulatory framework in line with the Namibia agriculture policy and Growth at Home strategy.
Schlettwein said the two subsectors are at the brink of collapse, with many producers going out of production due to imports into Namibia.
However, he said available data indicates that Namibian consumption is able to support the poultry, dairy and pork industries if these industries are assisted to grow on the premise that consumer prices are equal to those in the Southern Africa Customs Union region and not to the detriment of consumers.
- email: matthew@namibian.com.na
