Foot-and-mouth disease: Savanna suspends operations, 240 jobs at risk
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Windhoek Observer
Savanna Beef Processors has suspended slaughtering, cooling, cutting and packing after foot-and-mouth disease emerged in Namibia, putting around 240 jobs at risk. The abattoir is seeking markets and financial support while its operational employees are on leave, the Windhoek Observer reports.
Savanna Beef Processors, a Namibian abattoir owned by producers, has suspended slaughtering, cooling, cutting and packing after foot-and-mouth disease emerged in Namibia, threatening around 240 jobs in November and December, according to the Windhoek Observer newspaper. Employees working on the production lines have been placed on leave, while a reduced team is maintaining the site and operating the remaining cooling systems.
The disease was reported on 23 September, just two weeks after the abattoir had reached its maximum capacity of 250 cattle per day. Savanna, which has 730 shareholders and more than 500 members in the Beef Value Chain Forum (BVCF), is seeking alternative markets, negotiating financial support with its banks and selling locally products stored in its cold rooms and freezers. Containers already certified for export have also been released from the port of Walvis Bay.
The company expects beef prices to fall until access to European Union and UK markets is restored. It wants to bring in international veterinary experts, resume cattle deliveries and find new export outlets. The BVCF steering committee approved a contribution of 500,000 Namibian dollars to fund an expert tasked with helping Namibia regain its international veterinary status from the World Organisation for Animal Health.
Agriculture Minister Inge Zaamwani has asked her officials to seek support from the European Union. Savanna’s suspension comes as foot-and-mouth disease threatens Namibia’s economy, according to an alert published on 27 October.
