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Elita Chikwati Agriculture Reporter
Government will soon close unlicensed abattoirs as it moves to bring sanity to the livestock industry, a senior official has said. Addressing dairy farmers attending the Zimbabwe Dairy Farmers’ Association of Zimbabwe general meeting in Bulawayo recently, Ministry of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development Deputy Minister Responsible for Livestock Cde Paddy Zhanda said illegal operations in the livestock industry were rampant and this had contributed to the spread of diseases.

“We have so many abattoirs operating illegally. We do not need any more abattoirs but those already in operation should meet the required standards. We must stop issuing new licences.

“There is corruption taking place in the livestock industry but we are going to take action. We do not need to know who is behind the operators and will stop operations for those who do not comply with the regulations,” he said.

He said some illegal activities in the livestock industry had also increased the spread of the foot and mouth disease.

Farmers complained that police were manning roadblocks during the day but illegal movements of cattle occurred at night.

Cde Zhanda challenged farmers and other stakeholders in the industry to report the illegal activities.

“Farmers are aware of people who are illegally moving livestock, but they are keeping quiet. You should report the illegal activities.

“Some veterinary officers are aware of these activities and some are involved in illegal dealings with business people. We should implement policies according to the book,” he said.

The livestock industry is under threat from foot-and-mouth disease (FMD), which has hit most parts of Masvingo, Midlands and spread to most parts of Matabeleland South and parts of Manicaland.

For successful control, stakeholders in the cattle and pig industry need to comply with veterinary movement restrictions applied to hotspots and outbreak areas.

Affected animals fail to eat due to the pain of the sores in their mouths. Young calves may die from infection or because their mothers cannot feed them due to pain in their milk udders.

Milk yield also falls.

Foot and mouth disease is an internationally listed or notifiable disease and it affects the economies of countries depending on cattle and pig production.

Countries experiencing FMD therefore suffer from trade embargoes limiting exports of even non-livestock products from affected areas.