It is of great importance that South Africa adopts an export-oriented strategy for its poultry sector, which remains a vital component of the country’s agricultural landscape, the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) emphasized recently.
The new strategy, which builds on the Poultry Sector Masterplan 2030, will be led by Deputy Minister of the DTIC, Zuko Godlimpi, and its first phase was finalized in 2023 after the initial endorsement in November 2019 that led to a 6% increase in chicken meat exports.
The second phase of this masterplan, per the Chief Director of Agro-processing at the DTIC, Ncumisa Mcata-Mhlauli, “will prioritise increasing exports of processed meat products, increasing local demand, and adopting effective trade and biosecurity measures while facilitating the transformation of the industry.”
With a total annual gross value of production of almost R72 billion in 2022, the poultry industry is the largest contributor to the agricultural sector in South Africa, accounting for 17.1% of the total agricultural gross value.
