South Africa: Legal Bid to Halt Import of Zambian Antelope
Sarah Hudleston
27 January 2010



Johannesburg — THE proposed importation of 153 sable antelope from Zambia next month could introduce foot and mouth disease to SA, with disastrous consequences for local red meat, venison and ostrich meat producers who rely heavily on the export market, red meat producers say.

On December 21, while most interested parties were taking their Christmas break, Agriculture Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson published a notice in the Government Gazette proposing to import sable from Zambia. The notice included guidelines for the proposed protocol to be used.

The sable come from Zambia's Kafue National Park, which has recorded cases of three types of foot and mouth disease.

They are being imported by a consortium of businessmen that includes a Zanu (PF) official and are being held in quarantine pens in a Zambian game reserve prior to being air-freighted to SA in the middle of next month, said lawyer Louis Garb, who is representing the Red Meat Forum of SA in a pending application to stop the importation.

The importation of these animals would contravene the provisions of the Animal Diseases Act and could see a complete ban on red meat exports by the Office International de Epizooties (OIE), the organisation for animal health, he said.

An urgent application is due to be brought to the South Gauteng High Court by the Red Meat Forum, aimed at stopping the new protocol being ratified.

In November, before the publication of the proposed protocol, the forum wrote to Dr BM Modisane, director-general of SA's department of veterinary services, warning of the risks.


Of primary concern to beef producers and game ranchers, however, is that no valid trade risk analysis has been conducted by v eterinary services , nor has one been made available to them or to the OIE.

Garb said a trade risk analysis was required in terms of the rules of the World Trade Organisation, of which SA is a signatory.

In a letter addressed to Joemat- Pettersson, Environmental Affairs Minister Buyelwa Sonjica, Deputy Agriculture Minister Pieter Mulder and director of the directorate of animal health Dr Mpho Maja, Garb said the proposed protocol and the manner in which it had been done threatened "to create a hitherto unknown precedent that (affects) the importation of all cloven-hoofed animals from Zambia".

Court halts sable imports
Feb 01 2010 16:12

Leani Wessels


Johannesburg - The Red Meat Forum has successfully stalled the import of Zambian sable into South Africa until the risk of an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease has been ruled out.

The North Gauteng High Court on Friday ruled against the legitimacy of a permit to allow the 153 antelope into the country.

The permit was granted on the strength of a protocol published in December by the department of agriculture, which allowed for the Animal Diseases Act to be circumvented and for cloven-hoofed animals from Zambia to be imported.

The Red Meat Forum alleged that a due risk analysis - which would detect any diseases present in the animals - was not carried out, posing a massive threat to the disease-prone meat industry in SA.

The court ruled that the permit can only be granted once a full risk analysis in terms of the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) has been performed.

The Red Meat Forum told the court an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in South Africa could spell disaster for an industry dependent on international trading partners. Lax application of the protocol could result in an export ban under the WOAH.

Foot-and-mouth disease can be transmitted by infected animals or insects like ticks, making containment difficult.

"We are exceedingly pleased that we are now in a position to discuss the way forward with the department [of agriculture]," said Red Meat Forum chairperson Dave Ford. "As opposed to the closed door policy which seems to have been the case in the past, we're hoping this will open transparency."

In a statement released on Friday, the department of agriculture said it is "committed to uphold international protocol and guidelines that pertain to the trade on cloven-hoofed animals as well as our national legislation".

- Fin24.com

South Africa: Twenty of Import-Row Antelope Die in Pens
Sarah Hudleston
5 February 2010



Johannesburg — TWENTY of the prize Zambian sable that were due to be imported into SA have died in their quarantine pens at the Lusaka National Park due to heavy rains and their inability to move to higher ground.

The sable were due to be airfreighted to SA by February 16 before a court challenge blocked the importation until health regulations, and the requirements for public comment on these, were met .

The 153 sable -- with a value of about R1m each -- were captured in the Kafue National Park, where three types of foot-and-mouth disease are known to be endemic.

Aitjie van Wyk, one of the importers, said on Tuesday that at times the antelope were wading up to their knees in mud.

Van Wyk said he could not understand why the Red Meat Industry Forum of SA, which brought the court challenge, should object to the importation of the sable, as 40 Zambian sable had been imported into SA in 1999 under less stringent quarantine conditions.

Dave Ford, of the Red Meat Industry Forum, said he had heard some of the sable had died of stress, and he believed the remaining ones should be released back into the wild. "I also strongly believe that if there is a deficient protocol regarding the importation of cloven-hoofed animals, it could see people trying to import cloven-hoofed ruminants into SA, which would prove a deadly threat to our national herd."

Ford said he had spoken to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) and hoped they would get the SPCA in Zambia to keep an eye on the sable.