Veterinary services warns meat smuggling could spread FMD

Chief veterinary officer Kenneth Shoombe says some Namibians are taking advantage of meat shortages by illegally slaughtering animals on farms and transporting carcasses to towns to make money during the foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak.

Namibia detected FMD last month and has imposed restrictions on slaughtering.

Shoombe warns that the illegal movement of meat could spread the disease across the country and threaten the livestock industry.

“Now that there is no meat, some Namibians who are not following the process opt to go to the farms and start slaughtering and move the carcass to town to make quick money,” he said during the Bank Windhoek Agriculture Series in Windhoek on Friday.

He said such activities could undermine efforts by veterinary officials and other stakeholders to contain the outbreak.

“Transgression will reverse the process and will put us backwards. A stomach of one person cannot compromise the national food safety and overcoming the disease,” he said.

Shoombe warned that smuggling meat from affected areas into other parts of the country could cause the disease to spread beyond the areas where it is currently being contained.

“The whole country will then enter an outbreak of FMD. The whole value of our farming system will collapse,” he said.

He said a nationwide outbreak could leave farmers without markets for their livestock, making it difficult for those with bank loans to repay their debts.

“Those who have bonds with banks might not be able to repay because there is no market,” he said.

Shoombe urged Namibians to follow veterinary regulations and work with state veterinarians and other stakeholders to prevent the disease from spreading.

He also called on communities to educate family members about the dangers of illegally slaughtering animals and transporting meat during the outbreak.

This comes after police arrested a man (35) at a roadblock on the C20 road near Stampriet last weekend for transporting raw meat in violation of regulations introduced as a result of the FMD outbreak.

Police spokesperson Kauna Shiwambi says the suspect was transporting 6.1kg of raw kudu meat from his farm in the Gobabis district to another farm in the Hardap region.

The man was charged and issued a N$500 admission-of-guilt fine.

In a separate incident at Veepos at Aranos, police arrested a man (27) found in possession of suspected stolen livestock meat.

Shiwambi says the suspect could not explain where he obtained the meat and was accused of violating FMD restrictions.

The police confiscated and disposed of half a goat carcass, including its organs, valued at N$1 300.

The arrests follow similar incidents last month, just two days after Namibia confirmed the FMD outbreak.

In the Kavango West region, police arrested a man after intercepting a vehicle carrying four men and slaughtered cattle suspected to have been stolen during Operation Basadi in the Bunya area.

On the same day, two men allegedly stole and slaughtered a sheep valued at N$600 at Omupanda village in the Okakarara district.