Renewed vaccination plea from SA poultry producers

The Association of Meat Importers and Exporters of Southern Africa (AMIE) loves chicken imports but it is not very good at promoting chicken exports. It’s also not very good about answering questions about its chicken export activities, or inactivities.

Since AMIE signed the first poultry master plan in 2019, it has remained silent while FairPlay has repeatedly asked what it is doing to boost chicken imports, in line with its master plan commitments. When the master plan was revised this year, again with AMIE’s signature, we asked the same questions. More silence.

Now, at last, Amie has been stung into response by out latest queries. The response should embarrass them because it implies that they are doing very little to help expand chicken exports. Strange, when more chicken exports would earn them more money.

Earlier this month, FairPlay noted that Amie was voluble about bureaucratic obstacles to beef exports but issued no angry press statements when the same problems faced chicken producers. What, we asked, was Amie doing to help address state veterinary shortages which hamper exports. Had it used its export contacts and experience to suggest new export markets for chicken or to urge government to sign new export agreements?

The answers, in the AMIE mouthpiece Chickenfacts this week, were revealing.

Within the poultry master plan, it says, AMIE is responsible for collaborating with government and industry to:

• Improve export certification systems.
• Address veterinary service capacity.
• Streamline export protocols for poultry and red meat.
• Support the development of new export markets.

Has it done any of this? AMIE replies with a generality that it “is actively fulfilling its role within the Poultry Master Plan and continues to engage government on the regulatory reforms necessary to unlock export growth.”

The only specific is that “AMIE has also engaged with the Minister of Agriculture to review the inefficiencies in the Animal Health Department – contradicting FairPlay’s assertion that the association has been inactive.”

Two cheers! AMIE has “engaged” with a government minister about veterinary inefficiencies. And what else? From the coy way AMIE has framed its answers, it would appear not much.

So FairPlay will keep on asking, using Amie’s four points of what it is supposed to be doing.

The United States has implemented a third round of global tariffs, hitting South Africa and dozens of other nations with a 12.5% levy over forced labour allegations. In response, South Africa is pursuing new legislation to reduce the rate, though key product exemptions offer some immediate relief to local exporters.

The third round of President Donald Trump’s global tariffs came into effect last week, as his 10% Round 2 tariffs expired. 

Round 1 – the initial 30% “reciprocal” tariffs imposed in April 2025 – were declared illegal this year, and are being refunded.

Round 3 has two levels – 12.5% for South Africa and most other US trading partners, and 10% for a favoured few.

They are being applied to 60 countries in terms of Section 301 of America’s 1974 Trade Act, which authorises actions to address unfair foreign practices affecting US commerce. In this case, the unfair practice was alleged to be a failure to stop the importation of goods produced with forced labour.

All countries investigated were found guilty, including those that, like South Africa, made presentations in Washington to show they had not done what they were accused of. 

Three questions are being asked – will Round 3 tariffs last longer than the previous attempts, might they be reduced, and how badly will the 12.5% tariffs affect South Africa?

On question 1, the first legal challenge was launched on the day the tariffs were announced, but US analysts believe that this this time they may be more difficult to dislodge. So they could be in effect for some time.

Might the tariffs be reduced? The South African government hopes so. It has signalled its intention to introduce legislation prohibiting the import of goods produced with forced labour. The objective is to have the tariffs reduced to 10% or less, or eliminated entirely.

On question 3, Engineering News points out that several products remain exempted, including platinum and other precious metals, various citrus products and other fruits, fruit juices and nuts. In addition, the 12.5% tariffs are also applied to most of South Africa’s agricultural competitors.

While the playing field remains elevated, at least it’s level.

South Africa’s consumer inflation rate is going up, but food inflation keeps on going down.

The story of two inflation rates is contained in StatsSA’s inflation data for June 2026.

“Annual consumer inflation jumped to 5,0% in June 2026 from 4,5% in May 2026,” it reported. “This is the highest inflation print since June 2024 when the rate was 5,1%.”

While consumer inflation is at a two-year high, food price inflation slowed further in June, dipping to 1,6% from 1,9% in May and 2,9% in April. 

The consumer inflation rate increase was driven by higher fuel prices because of the Iran war. More expensive fuel had a knock-on effect on transport costs, from taxis to bus fares and school transport.

Food price inflation, on the other hand, is going down because of reductions in previously high beef and pork prices, following outbreaks of foot and mouth disease (cattle) and African swine fever (pigs).

However, the Daily Maverick warns that the El Niño weather phenomenon will hit food prices, but not yet. 

El Niño is expected to bring hotter and drier conditions in the second half of the year – possibly severely. This would affect next year’s grain harvests, and maize and feed prices.

“Concerns are mounting about the impact of the current El Niño phenomenon, even with abundant supplies from this year’s stout harvest. The ripple effects from that will be felt only in 2027,” the Daily Maverick said.

South Africa’s new agriculture minister, Willie Aucamp, is being praised by beef farmers for his efforts end the crisis which has developed over the vaccination of cattle against foot and mouth disease. Minister Aucamp should use his problem-solving skills to get poultry vaccinated against bird flu, says FairPlay founder Francois Baird.

Key takeaways:

• A proven track record: New Agriculture Minister Willie Aucamp is winning praise from beef farmers for resolving the foot-and-mouth disease vaccine crisis. FairPlay founder Francois Baird is urging him to apply those same problem-solving skills to the poultry sector.
• The cost of inaction: The 2023 bird flu outbreak devastated the poultry industry, costing R9.5 billion in losses, shutting down small producers, and destroying jobs – all without a single cent of government compensation paid to farmers.
• The regulatory impasse: Mass vaccination has been paralysed for two years because the department’s regulations are too complex and expensive for farmers to implement. While former minister John Steenhuisen promised revised rules, the industry has yet to see them.
• High stakes for food security: Chicken accounts for over 60% of the meat consumed in South Africa. Leaving the industry unprotected puts national food security and over 100,000 jobs across the poultry and grain supply chains at serious risk.

Bird flu devastated the South African poultry industry in 2023. No compensation was paid for the millions of chickens culled, despite laws requiring it, so industry losses totalled R9.5 billion, small producers closed and jobs were lost.

Vaccination is a key requirement to prevent a repeat of that disaster. Yet the poultry industry has been trying in vain to get a workable agreement with government that would allow a mass vaccination programme to get underway.

For the past two years, the department of agriculture has insisted in regulations that farmers say are too complex and too expensive to implement. As a result, only one pilot project has gone ahead on one site, but mass vaccination isn’t happening.

Former minister John Steenhuisen took the first steps to resolve this impasse, but the poultry industry has yet to see the revised regulations that have been promised.

This is where Minister Aucamp needs to step in and fix things, quickly. Without an agreement that will work for both the government and for poultry producers, bird flu will remain the poultry industry’s biggest risk.

Also at risk will be the national and regional economies, for the poultry industry is the largest component of the agricultural sector and the biggest employer in rural areas. More than 100 000 jobs are at stake in the poultry and grain industries, and the rest of the poultry value chain.

At risk too, will be South Africa’s food security. Chicken feeds the nation, and it comprises more than 60% of the meat consumed annually.

It’s a vitally important industry that should not be bound up in red tape.

FairPlay has accused chicken importers of twisting the facts in their fight against tariffs and duties that reduce import volumes and importer profits.

FairPlay took up the issue after ChickenFacts, official mouthpiece of the Association of Meat Importers and Exporters, published a long tirade against duties that cut chicken imports.

Importers opposing authorised trade measures should disclose that “they want more imports that would make them a lot more money”, said FairPlay founder Francois Baird.

ChickenFacts had unfairly accused the South African poultry industry of claiming to be in crisis which it was actually prospering and profitable.

“The poultry industry has celebrated the fact that it has become the largest agricultural industry in South Africa, valued at R74 billion and that it has invested more than R2 billion in production growth,” Baird responded.

“Importers who think this is crisis talk must have their heads under their wings.”

Baird took issue with importers’ frequent portrayal of anti-dumping duties as protectionist. He reminded them that the World Trade Organisation (WTO) sees dumping as an illicit trade practice and authorises anti-dumping duties to restore fair competition.

“South Africa has imposed anti-dumping duties on nine poultry producing countries because official investigations have shown they are importing chicken into South Africa, contrary to WTO rules at unfairly low prices, harming local producers and threatening local jobs. Yet chicken importers want these measures scrapped.”

Baird also accused imports of pretending that the steep reduction in chicken imports since 2018 had resulted solely from the imposition of general tariffs and anti-dumping duties.

“Not a mention of bird flu, which has ravaged Europe and North America in recent years, and has been the main contributor to lower chicken import volumes.”

Baird said the South African poultry industry was growing, and profitable.

“The two major risks it faces are renewed outbreaks of bird flu and a renewal of the flood of dumped chicken imports that pitched the industry into crisis a decade ago.”

The Association of Meat Importers and Exporters (AMIE) are prolific importers of chicken. Strangely, they seem less keen on the potentially lucrative business of chicken exports.

AMIE members have been silent on what, if anything, they are doing to sell more South African chicken in foreign markets.

AMIE should be working hard to promote chicken exports, not least because it could be very profitable. The association is a signatory to the 2019 poultry master plan and the revised version signed this year. The Phase 2 plan puts an even higher priority on a rapid expansion of chicken exports.

Yet, in his frequent statements recently on meat export problems, AMIE CEO Paul Matthew has focused on issues affecting red meat, such as oxtail from Brazil. He makes no mention of the fact that the bureaucratic obstacles to red meat exports also affect South African chicken.

Matthew would have us believe that low chicken export volumes in recent years are all the fault of the poultry industry. Yet beef producers are in an “export paralysis”, hamstrung by a shortage of state veterinarians, port inefficiencies and insufficient government support in securing export agreements.

Where is AMIE’s voluble opposition to similar problems affecting poultry exports? Where is its support for increased market access for chicken in Europe and the Middle East? Does its offer to partner with government to provide additional resources where state capacity is stretched apply only to beef exports?

If its signature on the revised poultry master plan means anything, AMIE should stop sniping from the sidelines and show that really is prepared to help sell chicken abroad.