January 26, 2010

Botswana set to restructure beef sector

The Ministry of Agriculture has said plans are afoot to streamline the Botswana Meat Commission (BMC) in what the Agriculture Hub Coordinator has called 'restructuring' of the business.

Neil Fitt, who is the coordinator of the Agriculture Hub, says plans were underway to open up competition in the beef export industry.

Fitt said the amendment to the BMC Act would be introduced in Parliament sometime this year, while industry observers have said it is likely to be in this year's budget plan.

The ministry is currently reviewing the BMC Act, which governs the operations of the BMC and bestows the monopoly of beef exports on the commission.

This was after the ministry had undertaken 'extensive consultations' with stakeholders and plans were underway to open competition in the beef export industry.

According to Fitt, this is a restructuring of the business following the strategic plan that was submitted and accepted by the ministry last year.

The initiative is aimed at overhauling and modernising BMC operations from procurement to marketing. The BMC is also expected to maintain its objective of purchase and processing but will now do so at the highest standards.

With the restructuring it is envisaged that BMC will also be able to pay out the best prices to local farmers. Previously farmers were skeptical about selling their beasts to the commission complaining of low prices but since 2008 the situation has improved. BMC has also introduced new initiatives aimed at increasing throughput at its abattoirs.

As an attempt to increase offtake and develop the national herd in the right direction, feedlot production has been identified as the production system of choice to deliver the required change. The feedlot production is expected to re-direct the industry toward supplying the 230,000 head of cattle needed to run both abattoirs at capacity and satisfy the increasing demand internationally for our great product.

Nonetheless, the BMC has never been able to meet its quota of 19,000 tonnes of beef to the EU. In 2008 the BMC achieved a throughput of 113,000 and Raborokgwe said with the new incentive they hope to at least reach 160,000 by the end of this year.