Namibia: EU Suspends Beef Exports From Namibia Due to Foot and Mouth Disease

What the report says

The European Union has temporarily suspended imports of Namibian beef and other specified meat products after Namibia reported an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, according to RFI’s report distributed by AllAfrica. The decision affects fresh meat from cattle, sheep and goats, as well as some products from farmed and wild hoofed animals, though meat treated with the EU’s highest risk-reducing processing may still be allowed.

Namibia said last month that it had detected its first foot-and-mouth outbreak in its main commercial livestock area in 60 years. In response, authorities imposed a nationwide ban on livestock movement and meat exports. Officials have said the outbreak, first declared on 22 September, has since spread to 11 farms in the country’s south.

The EU is Namibia’s biggest beef customer, taking in more than 80% of exports, and EU ambassador Ana Beatriz Martins said around 10 million kilogrammes of Namibian beef were shipped to Europe each year, according to the report. The suspension matters not only for Namibia’s export earnings but also for jobs tied to the livestock trade. As background, foot-and-mouth disease is a highly contagious animal virus that can disrupt trade and require strict controls to contain, which is why authorities in Namibia and Europe are tightening biosecurity and movement restrictions.