Latest news with #Verwoerd
The Citizen
4 days ago
- Health
- The Citizen
Foot-and-mouth disease outbreak rocks South Africa's cattle industry
The confirmation of foot-and-mouth disease at Karan Beef's Heidelberg feedlot has further thrown South Africa's cattle industry into crisis. Farmers and organised agriculture are concerned about the outbreak of foot-and-mouth (FMD) disease in South Africa, which is having devastating financial consequences for farmers, but is not harmful to humans. A case of FMD was confirmed at a feedlot of Karan Beef near Heidelberg in Gauteng this week. Karan Beef spokesperson senior feedlot veterinarian Dr Dirk Verwoerd said a case of FMD was confirmed at its feedlot facility in Heidelberg on Monday. Outbreak will 'disrupt national supply chain' 'The outbreak is during peak weaning season and will significantly disrupt the national supply chain. Farmers may be forced to hold calves longer than usual due to limited feedlot capacity. Karan Beef has suspended all exports,' he said. Verwoerd said there was no risk to human health but local beef supply may be affected in the short term. 'Immediate action has been taken in collaboration with provincial and national veterinary services to contain the outbreak and ensure the ongoing safety of South Africa's beef supply. 'Despite Karan Beef's strict adherence to biosecurity protocols, including multiple individual inspections, 28-day quarantine periods and mouthing examinations over the past two years, FMD can still be transmitted by subclinical carriers that do not show visible symptoms, making detection extremely challenging.' Verwoerd said 120 000 cattle were currently housed at the Heidelberg facility. 'Investigations are ongoing to determine the source of the outbreak. Approximately 2% of the herd is currently infected.' ALSO READ: Farmers 'on the edge' over crippling foot and mouth disease Agriculture sector blames state for delayed response He said a controlled slaughter-out process will be implemented once vaccinations are completed under veterinary supervision. Southern African Agri Initiative president Dr Theo de Jager said the organisation has been engaging with the department of agriculture since December 2024, when the first rumours of FMD began circulating. 'It took months before the outbreak was officially declared and resources were mobilised to combat it,' he said. De Jager said farmers have since reported seeing cattle being transported on trucks or trailers to auctions daily, especially in the Mpumalanga highveld. Calls for stricter livestock movement and containment 'This crisis originates with the state. The department of agriculture, supported by local private veterinarians, must act immediately on observation of symptoms, identify the infected area and quarantine it. 'Failure to act swiftly ensures the further spread of the disease and causes devastating damage to the cattle industry,' he said. De Jager said if the state was unable to control the movement of livestock from infected areas, successful meat and dairy production would no longer be viable. Farmers left without income as prices rise 'Producers are not the only victims – consumers are likely to pay more for meat. Farmers in the expanded infected area, however, will not benefit from these higher prices, as they are prohibited from selling their livestock.' ALSO READ: Will SA run out of beef and chicken? Animal disease hits SA's top producer — what it means for consumers De Jager said if farmers cannot sell their livestock, their farms have no income. TLU SA and the Red Meat Producers' Organisation have urgently appealed to the government to put a disaster management programme or emergency fund in place to aid producers. TLU SA chair Bennie van Zyl said grassroots-level producers are in a dire situation. 'Farms are effectively being removed from circulation without any support.' Highly contagious According to the World Organisation for Animal Health, foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is a severe, highly contagious viral disease of livestock that has a significant economic impact. It affects cattle, swine, sheep, goats and other cloven-hoofed ruminants. 'The disease is rarely fatal in adult animals, but there is often high mortality in young animals due to myocarditis or, when the dam is infected by the disease, lack of milk.' FMD is characterised by fever and blister-like sores on the tongue and lips, in the mouth, on the teats and between the hooves. 'The disease causes severe production losses, and, while the majority of affected animals recover, the disease often leaves them weakened and debilitated.' NOW READ: Bird flu ban: Brazil suspension takes chicken and polony off South African tables — prices set to rise
IOL News
12-05-2025
- Politics
- IOL News
ActionSA condemns Orania and Kleinfontein as symbols of apartheid nostalgia
ActionSA condemns Orania and Kleinfontein, calling them modern symbols of racial division, not cultural pride. Image: File ActionSA condemned the existence of Orania and Kleinfontein, describing them as dangerous symbols of racial isolation masquerading as cultural preservation. ActionSA Parliamentary Chief Whip Lerato Ngobeni said she rejected the notion that these towns were legitimate expressions of cultural heritage. She called them 'sanctuaries of apartheid nostalgia, dressed up in the language of self-determination, but founded on the very bones of a brutal, exclusionary past'. Ngobeni criticises the use of Section 31 of the Constitution, which protects cultural rights, saying it has been 'dishonestly misused' to justify racial separation. 'That section protects cultural expression, not the establishment of modern-day Bantustans for those unwilling to let go of apartheid's legacy,' she said. The party, in a statement, said it rejected the idea that these towns are protected cultural enclaves, instead calling them 'ideological fault lines' rooted in apartheid-era thinking. The party draws a clear line between cultural preservation and what it sees as deliberate racial isolation, warning that Orania and Kleinfontein are not harmless communities but 'breeding grounds for division and symbolic violence against the dream of inclusion.' ActionSA contends that children raised in these towns are not being taught culture, but 'to fear difference, to internalise racial superiority, and to live apart rather than together.' Ngobeni does not confine her criticism to the towns themselves. She pointed to a wider political culture that tolerates and, in some cases, enables such divisions, accusing other parties in Parliament of hiding behind liberal or revolutionary façades while 'stoking hate, promoting division, and dodging responsibility for the flames they fan in society.' ActionSA places the ultimate blame on the African National Congress government for failing to dismantle apartheid's spatial and economic architecture. Ngobeni argues that decades of unfulfilled promises and rampant corruption have allowed racial exceptionalism to thrive. 'Instead of transformation, it delivered corruption, patronage, and dysfunction,' she said. 'It is precisely this failure that has given rise to racial exceptionalism disguised as cultural preservation.' While millions of Black and Coloured South Africans continue to struggle without access to basic services, jobs, or safety, ActionSA says Orania and Kleinfontein remain symbols of inequality. 'The worshippers of Verwoerd flourish, untouched and unbothered. It is an insult to every South African who dared to believe in the promise of a non-racial democracy,' Ngobeni said. She calls on South Africans to confront this reality directly, declaring, 'It is time to bury Verwoerd, not just in memory but also in law, policy, and everyday practice.' 'You cannot claim to love South Africa while dividing its people. You cannot provoke chaos and still call yourself a leader.' The condemnation of Kleinfontein has gained broader political traction beyond ActionSA. A week ago, thousands of Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) supporters marched to the 900-hectare settlement outside Pretoria, demanding its abolition. The Pretoria High Court recently declared Kleinfontein unlawful, ruling that the land was designated for agricultural use and not approved for residential development. EFF Gauteng chairperson Nkululeko Dunga, who led the march, called on Tshwane Municipality to immediately enforce the court's decision, halt illegal development, and investigate the legality of Kleinfontein's existence. 'Inspectors, law enforcement, and the city must investigate and regulate Kleinfontein,' Dunga said. In response, acting head of Tshwane's Human Settlements Department, Sello Chipu, assured marchers that the City would respond to the EFF's memorandum within 14 days. Dunga also addressed perceptions of racial animosity, stating: 'The EFF is a non-racist organisation. We have no business in hating white people. What we want is for Black people to understand that we are equal to them, and they are equal to us.' He added that white supremacy,not whiteness,was the target of their action. Get your news on the go, click here to join the IOL News WhatsApp channel. IOL Politics
