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The Citizen
4 days ago
- Business
- The Citizen
Bad news for meat lovers in South Africa
Meat has become the biggest driver of food inflation. The outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in South Africa has led to a significant increase in meat prices over the past three months. FMD is a highly contagious viral disease of livestock that has a significant economic impact. The disease affects cattle, swine, sheep, goats and other cloven-hoofed ruminants. Over the past months, SA has seen outbreaks in Gauteng, Limpopo, the Eastern Cape and the Free State. Recently, the department of agriculture lifted restrictions in the Eastern Cape and Limpopo provinces after implementing intensified efforts to contain the spread of the disease. ALSO READ: Will SA run out of beef and chicken? Animal disease hits SA's top producer — what it means for consumers Meat prices Paul Makube, senior agricultural economist at FNB Commercial, said meat was the biggest driver of food inflation, surging to a 25 month high of 6.6% year-on-year (y/y) and rising by 2.2% month-on-month (m/m) in June 2025. 'The disease-induced supply constraints underpinned the upswing in meat prices in the past three months,' he said. Due to the disease outbreak, there was a short supply of livestock, mainly cattle. This resulted in meat becoming more expensive. Meat under threat Makube added that while farmers were trying to control the FMD outbreak, the poultry industry also experienced a shortage threat. An outbreak of avian flu, also known as bird flu, in Brazil let to imports from the country being banned. Bird flu is a contagious viral disease that affects both domestic and wild birds. The ban caused panic in the market, as Barzil is the major source of mechanically deboned meat (MDM), which is used in the manufacturing of products such as polony and viennas. 'SA is a net importer of MDM due to lack of domestic capacity,' Makube said. ALSO READ: Bird flu: worry not, it is safe to eat eggs and chicken Ban lifted However, the department of agriculture and the Brazilian government came to an agreement and partially lifted the ban. Chicken from states in Brazil that have not experienced the outbreak of bird flu can export chicken to SA. Makube said this move might ease pressure on chicken prices in the medium term. 'While the FMD situation remains sticky with new outbreaks reported in the Free State and persisting in KZN, recent developments are that slaughtering has resumed in major feedlots with producer prices already off the boil early in July 2025'. Food inflation He added that South Africa's food inflation edged higher to 3% y/y in June 2025 relative to May's 2.8% y/y, underpinned by gains in core items and food and non-alcoholic beverages (FNAB), but still came below expectations of a 3.1% spike. 'Our analysis of the FNAB shows a 0.3 percentage point jump from the May level to 5.1% y/y in June. The food sub-index rose by the same margin from the previous month to 4.7% y/y choked by meat. 'However, monthly, food inflation slowed from 1.2% m/m in May to 0.7% m/m in June 2025, led by the fruits and nuts subcategory, which declined for the fourth consecutive month to -2.4% m/m.' The future 'In terms of the food inflation outlook, downside risks include a persistent rand exchange rate appreciation, weak international crude oil prices, bulging global grains stocks outlook (+586 million tons) and the consequent downside pressure on prices, as well as the potential recovery in livestock slaughter rates if the FMD situation dissipates further.' NOW READ: Here are the economic and social impacts of bird flu
NDTV
03-07-2025
- Sport
- NDTV
Toughest Part Is Training, Gets Very Little Time: Neeraj Chopra
Double Olympic medallist Neeraj Chopra on Thursday said shouldering the organisational responsibilities and managing his personal preparations at the same time were his biggest challenges ahead of the international javelin event that carries his name. The Neeraj Chopra Classic, which will have a top-class field, is set to take place at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium here on Saturday, and the ace athlete is coming after two highly competitive events in Paris and Ostrava, Czech Republic. The Ostrava Golden Spike competition was on June 24 while the Paris Diamond League was on June 20, and the Indian had won both the events. "The toughest part is the training. We get very little time to train. I competed in Paris and Ostrava and then travelled to Bengaluru, so I will try my level best. We also have to arrange everything together," Chopra said during a felicitation function organised by the Karnataka Olympic Association. "We also have to talk to all the athletes about how to make it better. But everything is going well. We will handle this and also compete. But the biggest goal is to make it (the event) bigger," said Chopra, who also met Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday. The 27-year-old reigning world champion said Bengaluru was the perfect venue to host an event of such magnitude. "I am feeling very good. The way the preparations are going, I am very happy. I thank the sports department, Karnataka Olympic Association, Karnataka government for helping me to organise an event in such short notice. "They helped me a lot. The biggest reason to do it in Bangalore is that it is a very good city. The weather is good." Neeraj hoped that the competition will help Indian athletes, in general, to rub shoulders with big international names and raise their performance. "As I said, we are going to add more events. So our Indian athletes who do well at the global level, will get a chance in India to compete among other good athletes. So, we intend to increase this event further," he added. The 12-man field will have seven athletes from abroad and five Indians, including Chopra himself. Germany's 2016 Olympics champion Thomas Rohler (PB: 93.90m), Kenya's 2015 world champion Julius Yego (PB: 92.72m), American Curtis Thompson (PB: 87.76m), Czech Martin Konecny (80.59m), Barzil's Luiz Mauricio Da Silva (PB: 86.62m), Sri Lankan Rumesh Pathirage (PB: 85.45m) and Poland's Cyprian Mrzyglod (PB: 85.92m) are the foreign competitors. The four Indians, apart from Chopra, are Sachin Yadav, Yashvir Singh, Rohit Yadav and Sahil Silwal. Chopra and some of the participants underwent light training at the Kanteerava Stadium on Thursday. Konecny, Thompson and Rohler were among the foreign athletes who have already arrived here. Chopra's coach and world record holder Jan Zelezny has also arrived.
