Protect SA Agriculture against excessive food imports
Government needs to take active steps to prevent more farmers to leave the industry to avoid that the country has to rely on unsustainable imports from elsewhere.
TAU SA President, Mr. Louis Meintjes, referred to the latest threat of this nature against poultry farmers. An excess of chickens seemingly of poor quality are being imported from the European Union and Brazil . This has resulted in South African poultry farmers currently struggling to make ends meet with a further possibility that 20 000 jobs could be lost.
"TAU SA supports the plea of the South African Poultry Association that increased import duties need to be implemented on the excess imported chicken meat," said Mr Meintjes. "The objection by the Association of Meat Importers and Exporters that this will lead to higher food prices is only partially true. Imports to South Africa are in most cases not sustainable and it is only when there is a seasonal overproduction elsewhere, that products are dumped on South Africa . Once the production balance has been restored the availability of those products decrease drastically. It furthermore needs to be taken into account that food imports are currently expensive due to the weakening of the rand.
"It is necessary that the domestic agricultural industry should be sustained and even stimulated to expand. Since chicken is the cheapest form of protein which is also accessible to the poorer community, government could create new job opportunities by increasing the import levies on chicken meat.
"The Government must realize that food will always be affordable as long as local economic development, and particularly agricultural production, is supported. This will create jobs and people who earn an income will have the ability to buy food.
"At this point in time several poultry farmers have left the industry. When imported products would dry up the country will no longer have the ability to be self sufficientbecause the industry will by then be close to destruction and has lost the ability to be sustainable," Mr. Meintjes warned. He says this principle is not only applicable to the poultry industry but will also negatively influence the grain and feed industry where jobs may also be lost.
Statement issued by TAU SA President, Mr. Louis Meintjes, June 25 2013
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