The beef between the government and livestock owners over the “out of control” foot and mouth disease (FMD) in South Africa doesn’t bode well for our economy, consumers' baskets or fixing the problem itself.
On Monday, agriculture minister John Steenhuisen confirmed the country is battling 274 cases of FMD in KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, the Free State, North West and Mpumalanga amid claims the government's failure to curb the disease is financially ruining small and big farmers and pushing up beef prices.
At the end of January, there was optimism that the spread had been contained, and the World Organisation for Animal Health officially declared FMD outbreaks in all other previously affected provinces — except the Eastern Cape and KZN — resolved and closed. But the situation changed in March when Steenhuisen said an auction in February spread FMD from KZN into Mpumalanga.
Tracing suggested both farm-to-farm spread and pinpoint introductions associated with livestock movements, where isolation protocols were ignored.
The government bought 900,000 vaccine doses at a cost of R72m to roll out, but the African Farmers' Association of South Africa says rural farmers haven't seen any of those doses. KZN chairperson Mbongeni Sikhakhane says small-scale farmers don’t seem to be on the list of beneficiaries, which is concerning.
Last month, the agriculture department and the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) hosted more than 400 industry stakeholders, who concluded existing approaches were fragmented and poorly enforced.
A way forward was mapped out with recommendations, including revising control zones; scaling up domestic vaccine production; and enforcing livestock identification and traceability.
A vaccine facility capable of producing 150,000 to 200,000 doses a year is scheduled for commissioning in March 2026, as Steenhuisen has stressed that compliance with biosecurity measures was non-negotiable. But the Transvaal Agricultural Union and Southern African Agri Initiative say since the indaba on the disease, there hasn’t been any tangible improvement, and this is now a “serious economic and agricultural crisis” for farmers, consumers and the economy.
With more South African families being forced to cut nutritious food from their plates due to rising costs, this is a crisis in which we can least afford to play the blame game or shrug responsibility.
In addition, KZN Agricultural Union’s Angus Williamson says meat producers are facing financial problems and are “at the end of their tether” over the outbreak.
The state’s lack of capacity to effectively control the outbreak, from state veterinarians, inspectors, or vaccines available to consistently manage outbreaks, was identified years ago. But it seems the tentacles of corruption have obliterated our biosecurity weapon against FMD.
Agricultural economist Wandile Sihlobo points to a decline in our manufacturing capacity at Onderstepoort Biological Products and the ARC due to “corruption and human resource challenges”.
The department, it seems, is acting on this — with Steenhuisen ambitiously hoping to become the vaccine supplier of choice on the African continent, with Treasury's buy-in for funding vaccine facilities, given the “huge economic potential” for domestic revenue and regional trade.
According to Stats SA’s May 2025 Consumer Price Index statistical report, food and nonalcoholic beverages prices contributed to the monthly increase in the CPI — the monthly measure of changes in prices for a range of consumer products.
Meat, specifically beef, is a key factor behind the rise in food inflation. The annual rate for meat jumped from 3.0% in April to 4.4% in May.
With more South African families being forced to cut nutritious food from their plates due to rising costs, this is a crisis in which we can least afford to play the blame game or shrug responsibility.
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