Business Reporter
THE poultry and dairy-related products sub-sectors are on the brink of collapse as many producers are going out of production due to imports into Namibia.
The explicit inclusion of dairy and poultry products in the Meat Industries Act would enable the Meat Board of Namibia to 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 is according to Minister of Agriculture, Water, and Land Reform, Calle Schlettwein, who introduced the Amendments to The Meat Industry Act, 1981 (Act No 12 Of 1981). He added that the inclusion of dairy and dairy-related products, as well as poultry and poultry-related products (including eggs), into the new Meat Industries Act will greatly assist local producers.
“The Meat Industry Act of 1981 makes provision for the control of certain livestock and livestock products, namely cattle, sheep, goats, and pigs, and meat derived therefrom. The Meat Board of Namibia (MBN) is the statutory institution established by the Act and is empowered to regulate the affairs of the meat industry and its contribution to the Agricultural Gross Domestic Product. The expertise gained by the Meat Board of Namibia to manage these industries led to a review of this particular Act to include other commodities such as dairy and poultry as well,” Schlettwein said.
He added that Namibia is a net importer of food in general and poultry, dairy, and pork, in particular. These products are part of the basic diet of households across all income levels. Schlettwein noted that the growth of these agricultural industries, all intensive industries with high employment creation potential, is crucial for import substitution, food self-sufficiency, food security, as well as adding value to locally produced raw material.
“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, to mention a few. Namibia’s industrial strategy ‘Growth @ 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,” Schlettwein summarized.
He added that available data indicates that Namibian consumption is able to support the poultry, dairy, and pork industries if these industries can be assisted to grow on the premise that consumer prices are equal to those in the SACU region and not to the detriment of consumers.
The minister stated that amendments to the Meat Industry Act will provide for the definition of dairy product and dairy product substitute as may be declared by the Minister, the expansion of the definition of livestock and livestock products to include poultry and poultry products, and any other animal or meat products which the Minister may declare as livestock product. Section 2 and Section 3 of the Act are amended by substitution to change the name of the Board and the scope of its functions, respectively, given the broader mandate.
The inclusion of poultry, dairy, and related products in the Livestock and Livestock Products Bill gives powers to MBN to regulate those sub-sectors to the benefit of local producers and consumers. This legislative change implies the repeal of the Control of the Import and Export of Dairy Products and Dairy Product Substitutes Act, 1986 (Act No. 5 of 1986). The Layman’s Bill is attached hereto.
The Meat Board of Namibia (MBN) has already established capacity, competence, and experience. Accordingly, the new “Livestock and Livestock Products Board of Namibia” will leverage its economies of scale to employ incremental resources to facilitate the inclusion and smooth transition of dairy and poultry as controlled products of the Livestock and Livestock Products Bill.
