Processed meats production declines 25 percent
Processed meat was one of the country’s biggest foreign currency earners before the closure of the Cold Storage Company.
PRODUCTION of processed meats has declined by close to 25 percent as processors struggle to import mechanically deboned meat required in the production of processed meats, the Livestock and Meat Advisory Council (LMAC) has said.
The import of mechanically deboned meat (MDM) has been disrupted by a number of issues, including the meat scandal in Brazil which led to a temporary ban on its import and the outbreak of diseases in South Africa which curtailed the importation of poultry related products from, and through, South Africa.
“The price of mechanically deboned meat doubled in the first quarter of 2018 when compared with the same period last year, with only half as much imported. Grave concern has been raised about the potential human and animal health risks posed by imports of offal, suspected to originate in South Africa. Following outbreaks of listeriosis, Avian Influenza and African swine fever in that country, Zimbabwe has imposed a ban on the importation of such products from South Africa,” LMAC said.
Mechanically deboned meat is the main ingredient in processed meats and sausages. It is generally the lowest priced meat product and low grade or bi-products from boneless cuts of more expensive meat products. The 40 percent duty makes locally produced processed meat products non-competitive relative to regional products.
Processed meat was one of the country’s biggest foreign currency earners before the closure of the Cold Storage Company. Super Canners of Bulawayo was responsible for over 70 percent of the total Zimbabwean export of processed meat to the European Union and of all the corned beef exports.
The State-owned meat processor was the largest meat processor in Africa, handling up to 150 000 tonnes of beef and associated by-products a year.
Imports of MDM for February to April 2018 were 798 tonnes, representing a decline of 44 percent over the same period in 2017.
“The cost of MDM averaged $768 per tonne between January and April, an increase of 11 percent over the same period in 2017. The rise in cost is due to a number of factors, including supply constraints from traditional markets such as Brazil and Argentina. The import duty of 40 percent continues to put upward pressure on cost, notwithstanding the fact that MDM is categorised as a raw material,” LMAC said.
The Zimbabwe Revenue Authority, has stepped up border surveillance and tracking of animal products in a three -pronged partnership with the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture and Rural Resettlement and Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Enterprise Development to curb illegal meat imports.
“The tightening of border surveillance and the tracking of imports of animal products is a welcome development. As well as protecting Zimbabwe’s self-sufficient meat industry from cheaper, smuggled imports, the interception of unauthorised animal product imports has a role to play in public health and in animal disease control. Some contagious and decimating animal diseases can be spread through infected meat and other animal products, as well as through live animal transmission,” LMAC said.