Latest news with #KaranBeef
The Citizen
4 days ago
- Health
- The Citizen
Foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in North West confirmed
'Tissue samples were sent to the laboratory and the results came back confirming both SAT 2 and SAT 3 types of the virus.' The North West Department of Agriculture and Rural Development has confirmed an outbreak of the Foot and Mouth Disease in Dr Kenneth Kaunda District, specifically in the JB Marks Local Municipality. This comes after South Africa's largest beef producer, Karan Beef, confirmed an outbreak of the disease at its Heidelberg feedlot in the province of Gauteng. Provinces that already have cases include Limpopo, Eastern Cape, Mpumalanga, and KwaZulu-Natal. FMD is a severe, highly contagious viral disease of livestock that has a significant economic impact. The disease affects cattle, swine, sheep, goats and other cloven-hoofed ruminants. The disease is characterised by fever and blister-like sores on the tongue and lips, in the mouth, on the teats and between the hooves. It causes severe production losses, and while the majority of affected animals recover, the disease often leaves them weakened and debilitated. ALSO READ: Why beef producers are still optimistic about 2025, despite foot-and-mouth disease warning In a statement, departmental spokesperson Emelda Setlhako said the Department was first alerted by a Private Veterinarian who had visited the farm and saw suspicious signs. 'The State Veterinarian collected samples, which were sent to the Onderstepoort Veterinary Institute (OVI) to test for the disease.' Another incident was first detected at an abattoir in the Madibeng Local Municipality. The clinical signs of the affected animals were missed at ante-mortem inspection but were detected on the slaughter line during the Meat Inspection process. 'Tissue samples were sent to the laboratory, and the results came back confirming both SAT 2 and SAT 3 types of the virus.' Animals transported back Setlhako added that the animals that were not slaughtered were escorted back to a feedlot in Ventersdorp, with a permit from the Red Cross. 'Both farms linked to the outbreak have been put under quarantine, prohibiting the movement of animals and animal products.' He highlighted that the Department of Agriculture has identified all the farms linked to the Gauteng outbreak and is sampling them for testing to confirm whether they are positive or not. 'All such farms have also been put under precautionary quarantine until the test results are back.' ALSO READ: Farmers 'on the edge' over crippling foot and mouth disease 'Any suspected case of Foot and Mouth disease in susceptible animals must be reported to the local State Veterinarian immediately. 'The disease affects cattle, pigs, sheep, goats, and other cloven-hoofed animals (domestic and wild). The major clinical features of the disease include fever, lameness, and the appearance of vesicles and sores in the mouth, feet, and teats.' Anso Bracken, Karan Beef marketing manager, said approximately 120 000 cattle are housed at the Heidelberg facility. The company produces an estimated 100 million kilograms of beef annually from this site alone. Approximately 2% of the herd is currently infected. Vaccines worth R72 million expected The Department of Agriculture said a R72 million shipment of foot-and-mouth disease vaccines will arrive in South Africa by mid-June. Dipepeneneng Serage, Deputy Director-General: Agricultural Production, Biosecurity and Natural Resources Management, told Moneyweb the vaccines are being imported from Botswana 'due to South Africa's limited domestic manufacturing capacity'. The department has estimated the vaccine requirements for the disease for the 2025-2026 financial year at R1.2 billion, with each dose expected to cost around R100. NOW READ: Bird flu: worry not, it is safe to eat eggs and chicken
eNCA
11-06-2025
- Health
- eNCA
Producers mount coordinated response to FMD outbreak
JOHANNESBURG - The red meat industry is on high alert. A Foot-and-Mouth Disease outbreak is spreading, with confirmed cases in KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga and Gauteng. Now, the Red Meat Industry Services has set up a dedicated operations centre. It will monitor and mount a full-scale, time-bound response to the threat. Just last week, Karan Beef, one of the biggest producers, detected the disease at its Heidelberg facility. Dewald Olivier, CEO of Red Meat Industry Services, said vaccinations have started. "It seems like the spread within the Karan Beef lot has slowed down a little bit, and it also seems like an outbreak in Vosloorus is also slowing down," Olivier said. "It's going fairly well at this stage, we're just waiting for vaccines to arrive from Botswana, and then we can start with full-scale vaccination of the cattle."
IOL News
09-06-2025
- Business
- IOL News
Meat shortages could hit your wallet hard
Karan Beef confirms a case of Foot-and-Mouth Disease at its feedlot Image: Ayanda Ndamane Independent Newspapers Aviation flu could impact the price of poultry in South Africa. Image: File South African consumers may face higher meat prices this winter as outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease, an avian flu-related ban on Brazilian poultry imports, and financial turmoil in the local poultry sector tighten supply. Prices of mechanically deboned meat (MDM) have already surged by 140%, pushing up costs for processed products like polony, while disruptions in the beef sector create a complex picture for meat affordability - posing particular challenges for lower-income households. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. 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Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Next Stay Close ✕ Gordon Nicoll, chairperson of the South African Meat Processors Association (SAMPA), outlined the challenges: 'We're currently facing a serious supply issue when it comes to raw materials, specifically mechanically deboned meat from Brazil. The problem isn't just about price anymore; it's about whether you can get stock at all. That's the first issue.' Mechanically deboned meat is essential in the production of affordable processed meat products such as polony, viennas, russians, and tinned corned beef, which are staples for many South African households. Domestic production of MDM is minimal, making the country heavily reliant on imports, primarily from Brazil. 'South Africa imports about 19 000 tons per month,' Nicoll said. 'Brazil was the last open source. Now that is closed too, and other suppliers cannot meet our demand.' The suspension of Brazilian poultry imports since May 15, 2025, following an outbreak of bird flu in Rio Grande do Sul, has resulted in a shortage of MDM and increased prices. 'The price of mechanically deboned chicken has increased by 140% since the Brazilian import ban,' said Imameleng Mothebe, CEO of the Association of Meat Importers and Exporters (AMIE). 'Every day with no imports is another nail in the coffin of food security for millions.' At the same time, the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in South Africa has severely affected the beef sector. A confirmed case at a feedlot in Heidelberg, Gauteng, led to quarantine measures that cut animal slaughtering by nearly 75%. Despite the outbreak, Wandile Sihlobo, chief economist at the Agricultural Business Chamber of South Africa (Agbiz), reassured consumers about food safety and supply. 'Although foot-and-mouth disease is a serious concern for producers, beef products are safe and consumers should not be alarmed,' he said. Sihlobo explained that because South Africa is typically a net exporter of beef, export suspensions result in increased domestic supply, which could place downward pressure on prices in the short term. However, producers bear the economic burden. 'Export bans force farmers to hold cattle longer, increasing feed and care costs,' Sihlobo noted. Minister John Steenhuisen announced that the Department of Agriculture has ordered vaccines to cover the KwaZulu-Natal area, while assessments, as well as forward and backward tracing of the outbreak in Gauteng, are ongoing. "Over 900 000 doses of vaccines were ordered, and the first batch is expected to arrive next week. 'These plans are not only about responding to outbreaks, but also about building permanent infrastructure to manage future risks. 'More broadly, we are establishing a Biosecurity Council that will bring together the South African Police Service (SAPS), veterinarians, scientists, the Border Management Authority, and industry. We are rolling out a farm-to-fork national traceability system for livestock.' The department is also preparing to establish a Biosecurity Council to improve disease surveillance and control. Red Meat Industry Services (RMIS) will open a centralised Operational Centre on June 9, 2025, to coordinate the FMD response. The centre will lead efforts in vaccination, movement control, and collaboration with government and industry stakeholders. 'RMIS was established precisely for a time like this, to provide coordinated leadership and technical expertise,' said RMIS CEO Dewald Olivier. The plan includes expanding veterinary service capacity and creating FMD-free livestock compartments to secure supply chains. The poultry industry is further challenged by the recent business rescue of Daybreak Foods, one of South Africa's largest integrated poultry producers, which had to cull 350,000 chicks amid financial difficulties. This has compounded supply pressures on chicken products. Arnold Prinsloo, CEO of Eskort, called the combined impact of foot-and-mouth disease, the Brazilian import ban, and the Daybreak poultry crisis a 'triple whammy' for food security. 'Meat is going to be more expensive for everyone this winter, but many people will also face the threat of hunger and malnutrition,' he warned, urging government to ease the ban by allowing imports from unaffected regions. The Department of Agriculture has committed to reviewing Brazil's regionalisation application and considering a partial lifting of the import suspension. 'We are following international guidelines which allow trade from zones free of avian influenza,' Steenhuisen said. This approach is aimed at protecting both animal health and food supply stability.
The Sun
06-06-2025
- Health
- The Sun
South Africa to ramp up vaccinations as foot-and-mouth disease spreads
SOUTH Africa is building up vaccine stocks and expanding inoculations to fight a worsening foot-and-mouth disease outbreak, the agriculture ministry said, as the country faces threats to beef supplies. Foot-and-mouth disease is a highly contagious, viral infection of cloven-hoofed animals that may also affect other species. Flare-ups have been reported over the past several months in five of South Africa's nine provinces, with KwaZulu- Natal being the worst affected. This week, Karan Beef, which operates the country's largest feedlot and one of the world's biggest, reported an outbreak at its facility in Heidelberg, about 50 kilometres southeast of Johannesburg. The quarantine imposed on the feedlot, which slaughters about 2,000 cattle daily, could impact beef supplies. The government has ordered over 900,000 doses of foot-and-mouth disease vaccines with the first batch expected to arrive next week, the agriculture ministry said in a statement late on Thursday. 'These plans are not only about responding to outbreaks, but also about building permanent infrastructure to manage future risks,' it said. There are growing calls by some cattle producers to declare a 'state of disaster' and protect the industry from financial losses. Invoking disaster law gives the government additional powers to intervene in a crisis. The foot-and-mouth disease outbreaks have resulted in South African beef and related products being banned in markets such as China, Namibia and Zimbabwe. South Africa's livestock sector is also recovering from its worst avian flu outbreak, which destroyed a third of the national chicken flock in 2023. On Thursday, the government announced the first ever mass vaccination of poultry to prevent a repeat outbreak of high-pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), a bird flu that spreads rapidly in an infected flock, causing a high death rate.
The Sun
06-06-2025
- Health
- The Sun
South Africa expands vaccine drive amid FMD outbreak
SOUTH Africa is building up vaccine stocks and expanding inoculations to fight a worsening foot-and-mouth disease outbreak, the agriculture ministry said, as the country faces threats to beef supplies. Foot-and-mouth disease is a highly contagious, viral infection of cloven-hoofed animals that may also affect other species. Flare-ups have been reported over the past several months in five of South Africa's nine provinces, with KwaZulu- Natal being the worst affected. This week, Karan Beef, which operates the country's largest feedlot and one of the world's biggest, reported an outbreak at its facility in Heidelberg, about 50 kilometres southeast of Johannesburg. The quarantine imposed on the feedlot, which slaughters about 2,000 cattle daily, could impact beef supplies. The government has ordered over 900,000 doses of foot-and-mouth disease vaccines with the first batch expected to arrive next week, the agriculture ministry said in a statement late on Thursday. 'These plans are not only about responding to outbreaks, but also about building permanent infrastructure to manage future risks,' it said. There are growing calls by some cattle producers to declare a 'state of disaster' and protect the industry from financial losses. Invoking disaster law gives the government additional powers to intervene in a crisis. The foot-and-mouth disease outbreaks have resulted in South African beef and related products being banned in markets such as China, Namibia and Zimbabwe. South Africa's livestock sector is also recovering from its worst avian flu outbreak, which destroyed a third of the national chicken flock in 2023. On Thursday, the government announced the first ever mass vaccination of poultry to prevent a repeat outbreak of high-pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), a bird flu that spreads rapidly in an infected flock, causing a high death rate.
