By Wezi Tjaronda WINDHOEK Cattle farmers of the northern communal areas (NCA) are being offered N$1.50 extra per kilogramme in addition to the weekly carcass price to motivate them into selling their animals. Due to concerns of a low off-take (sales turnover) in these areas, the Meat Board has embarked on a cattle-marketing incentive scheme which started on March 1 and to run until November 30 this year to improve the low off-take of livestock and low abattoir utilisation in Caprivi, Kavango, Kunene North, Ohangwena, Omusati, Oshana and Oshikoto, which together hold the majority of the country’s cattle population in Namibia. The off-take remains very low, resulting in Meatco running its slaughter facilities at a loss. Meatco’s Manager for Public Relations, Uschi Ramakhutla, told New Era yesterday Meatco has lost N$134.6 million over 14 years, which forms the bulk of the company’s Corporate Social Investment. “The off-take in the NCA has always been low and a concern to Meatco. Meatco is managing the plant on behalf of the government using funds from profits made in the RSA and EU markets from products produced south of the veterinary cordon fence,” said Ramakhutla. In 2004 for instance, as low as 9 787 cattle went through the two Meatco abattoirs from a population of 1.2 million cattle. In 2006, the number improved to 20 177 from a population of around 1.1 million cattle. In comparison to areas south of the veterinary cordon fence (SVCF), of 1.2 million cattle in 2005, more than 141 000 went through Meatco plants. Studies indicate that more than half of all livestock in Namibia are kept north of the veterinary cordon fence on about 16 percent of the total land area of the country. This results in large-scale degradation of rangelands and the increased vulnerability of livestock farmers to periodic dry periods and droughts. The Ministry of Agriculture, Water and Forestry has availed N$5 million to the Meat Board to implement the scheme to assist producers in the NCA to cover some of the costs they incur by the compulsory quarantine of their cattle. Export markets require that cattle and beef north of the VCF be quarantined for 21 days before slaughter and another 21 days after slaughter respectively. The Meat Board will offer N$1 per kilogramme in addition to the weekly price of the carcass, while Meatco will offer an additional 50 cents per kilogramme at slaughtering as support to producers with quarantine-related costs. The scheme excludes condemned carcasses or carcasses that are condemned as a result of diseases such as measles, which would make them unfit for human consumption and also abattoirs that are not registered with the Meat Board. The board said cold dress weight would be used to determine the total incentive producers would receive. Meatco said it has targeted to have 30 000 cattle through the two plants in the NCA adding that increasing the number of cattle at its plants is a priority for the company to offer a quality product to the market in order to earn a reasonable income. According to the Namibia National Farmers’ Union (NNFU), animals incur a lot of expenses arising from transport, feed, medicine and other labour-related costs before they can have their animals slaughtered. NNFU Chief Executive Officer, Vehaka Tjimune, told New Era on Tuesday the extra costs demoralized farmers from parting with their animals. “Farmers have to transport their animals and look for a herder and also feed and water them, which is costly,” he said. Cattle with an average weight of 170.3 kg would fetch N$2 415 per head, with a farmer’s quarantine costs being around N$366 per head, according to Meatco. But to improve the off-take to satisfactory levels in the NCA, Tjimune said the whole marketing chain should be reorganized to take into consideration all angles instead of focusing on one area. This could include addressing the cultural aspects associated with keeping large herds of cattle. Ramakhutla said the incentive goes up to November because few farmers offer their cattle for sale during October to February, a period during which farmers invest in crop production. Cattle farming is still largely a secondary activity and therefore the low off-take of traditionally-owned cattle is associated with high status/wealth within the traditional community. “This association is so strong that some farmers would go out to buy cattle for a family wedding instead of slaughtering one of his own, as is the norm. The link in farming with cattle for the market and thereby creating wealth has still not been made by the majority of cattle owners in the NCA,” added Ramakhutla.