Global cereal production this year is forecast to reach a record 2.81 billion tonnes, according to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations’ latest Cereal Supply and Demand Brief released on Nov. 3.

 

Of note was higher projected coarse grain production in China and most of West Africa and lower forecasts for the United States and the European Union. Wheat output forecasts were raised for Iraq and the United States and revised downward for the European Union and Kazakhstan. World rice production in 2023-24 is forecast to increase marginally year-on-year. The new revisions include an upgrade to India’s production, more than offsetting various other revisions, particularly a further downgrade of Indonesian production prospects.

 

World cereal utilization in 2023-24 is forecast to reach 2.810 million tonnes, with the total utilization of both wheat and coarse grains set to surpass 2022-23 levels while rice utilization is expected to stagnate at the previous season’s level.

 

The world cereals stocks-to-use ratio for 2023-24 is forecast to stand at 30.7%, “a comfortable supply situation from a historical perspective” and marginally above the previous year’s level of 30.5%, according to the FAO.

 

Global trade in cereals in 2023-24 is forecast at 469 million tonnes, a 1.6% contraction from the preceding year.

 

The FAO also noted in a separate report that persisting and intensifying conflicts are aggravating food insecurity, and moderating international food commodity prices are being countered by weak currencies in many low-income countries. A total of 46 countries around the world, including 33 in Africa, are assessed to need external assistance for food, according to the latest Crop Prospects and Food Situation report, a triannual publication by FAO’s Global Information and Early Warning System (GIEWS).

 

More than half the residents of the Gaza Strip were estimated to be in acute food insecurity already in 2022, and escalation of the conflict there between Israel and the Hamas organization will increase humanitarian and emergency assistance needs even as access to the affected areas remains an alarming concern, the FAO said, adding that spillover effects from the conflict could worsen food insecurity in Lebanon.

 

While world cereal production is forecast to expand by 0.9% in 2023 from the year before, the pace of growth will be half of that rate for the group of 44 Low Income Food Deficit Countries (LIFDCs), the report noted.

The food authority has said that it will be mandatory for notified labs to upload the testing/analysis report of fortified rice kernel, and vitamin-mineral premix for fortified rice kernel on the Infolnet portal.  

 

The FSSAI has issued an order in this regard, issuing directions to laboratories and asking them to comply without fail.

 

Under the FSS (Recognition and Notification of Laboratories) Regulations, it is mandatory for all the FSSAI notified labs to share the record of observations and upload the test report on the online platform of the food authority.

 

FSSAI’s order says that labs which are notified for the testing of fortified rice kernel and vitamin-mineral premix for fortified rice kernel are required to upload the testing/analysis report to Infolnet on a real-time basis.

 

These labs were directed to submit monthly reports of testing carried out by them to FSSAI before 5th of every month.

 

FSSAI’s order also asked these labs to submit a report about the non-compliant samples and their manufacturers as well.

 

The labs were also directed to keep the remnant samples of the fortified rice kernel and premix for the fortified rice kernel for at least three months from the date of reporting in the refrigerated condition (5-10 degree C).

 

'All laboratories are directed to comply with the directions failing which strict penal action will be taken against the defaulting samples,' reads the order.

The Maharashtra cabinet on Wednesday approved the state’s first export incentive policy which is aimed at generating investments worth Rs 25,000 crores. The state plans to have a 22 % share in the country’s target of $ 1 trillion exports by 2030.

 

The policy aims to double the value of the state’s export from the current $ 72 billion to $ 150 billion and to introduce 30 projects aimed at export infrastructure in the next five years. The policy will extend to 2027-28. The policy is expected to benefit 5,000 MSMEs, besides large projects and create 40,000 job opportunities, the government claimed. As part of the policy, the government will provide financial assistance upto Rs 50 crore for export oriented specific projects Rs 100 crore for export oriented industrial parks.

The policy will also encourage the development of districts as export hubs by improving the export contribution of each district in order to reduce regional disparity.

Indonesia’s Ambassador to India Ina Hagniningtyas Krisnamurthi on Wednesday expressed her country’s commitment to fostering stronger bilateral ties with New Delhi in trade and investment.

 

With Indonesia’s special focus on its Special Economic Zone Sei Mangkei, she highlighted the investment opportunities in the SEZ.

 

At a session held on 'Opportunities to Invest in Special Economic Zone Sei Mangkei' at the CII Northern region headquarters here, Krisnamurthi highlighted investments from Indian investors worth USD 198 million in the SEZ.

 

According to a CII statement, the bilateral trade between the two nations has reached USD 38.84 billion, positioning Indonesia as India’s largest trading partner in Southeast Asia for the 2022-23 period.

 

This robust trade relationship is underpinned by the investments made by more than 40 Indian companies to date in various sectors such as rubber, plastics, chemicals, textiles, and FMCG within Indonesia, it said.

 

Krisnamurthi expressed her country’s commitment to fostering stronger bilateral ties in trade and investment through the motto ‘Toward Golden Indonesia 2045 – realizing a sovereign, advanced, and sustainable nation through investment’.

 

She stated, 'We’re ready to support and facilitate any inbound investment to Indonesia and outbound investment. This showcases the stronger bilateral commitment in investment, trade, and economy between our two great nations.' 'Furthermore, SEZ Sei Mangkei stands out as one of the best investment destinations in Indonesia, and we encourage businesses to make full use of its potential,' she said.

 

Edward Samantha, Director, PT Kawasan Industri Nusantara (KINRA) in North Sumatra, Indonesia, a state-owned enterprise responsible for developing the Sei Mangkei SEZ, emphasized Indonesia’s commitment to promoting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) enhancement by establishing the SEZ.

 

'With the SEZ capacity we have, abundant incentives will become the major booster for the industry’s development, thus unleashing the maximum potential of each industry,' he said.

 

Highlighting CII’s efforts to boost bilateral trade, Vivek Gupta, Chairman – CII Chandigarh chapter, said, 'CII has been engaging with Indonesia across areas, assisting businesses from both countries to engage and collaborate.' As part of its initiative to facilitate members in their engagement with emerging economies, CII had opened its latest overseas office in Jakarta, Indonesia, on September 5, 2019. Inaugurated by S Jaishankar, Minister of External Affairs, the office became functional in January 2020.

 

Gupta further highlighted the potential for expanding trade in the areas of automotive components, agricultural commodities, engineering products, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology sectors, agriculture machinery, textile machinery etc. in the Sei Mangkei SEZ.

India and Malaysia are firming up a framework for conducting trade in national currencies and initiating a process to review the 12-year-old comprehensive economic cooperation agreement to include new domains and items, Malaysian Foreign Minister Zambry Abdul Kadir said. At the end of a three-day visit to India, Kadir told PTI that both sides are keen to expand trade engagement in new and emerging areas such as electronics, semiconductors, fintech, renewable energy, new technology and startups.

 

Ways to further boost the overall trajectory of ties were discussed extensively during talks between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his Malaysian counterpart on Tuesday night.

 

Asked about India's long-pending demand to Malaysia to extradite fugitive evangelist Zakir Naik, Kadir did not give a direct reply and said Kuala Lumpur is keen on strengthening institutional mechanisms to boost security cooperation rather than focusing on any individual.

 

Naik is facing a multi-agency probe in India on a variety of charges, including terror-related activities and inciting extremism through hate speeches. He left India in 2016.

 

Kadir also expressed Malaysia's gratitude to India for providing 170,000 metric tonnes of non-basmati white rice recently when the country was reeling under shortage of rice.

 

India banned export of non-basmati white rice in July, but the restriction was lifted for a small number of countries last month.

 

To a question on escalating tensions in South China Sea in view of China's increasing assertiveness, Kadir said Malaysia and other member nations of the ASEAN do not want to allow this region to become a 'flashpoint' and an area for 'big power' competition.

 

Listing various measures to expand India-Malaysia bilateral trade, he said both sides are finalising the framework for conducting trade in national currencies.

 

'We want to use it and both the countries can benefit from it. We think such a move will strengthen the local currencies,' he said late on Tuesday night.

 

India is in talks with a number of partner countries to develop alternative arrangements for trade settlements in national currencies in addition to the existing system of using freely convertible currencies like the US dollar.

 

The Malaysian foreign minister also said that he and Jaishankar discussed the need for having a re-look at the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) that came into effect in July, 2011.

 

'We feel there is a need to have a re-look at it to include new areas of trade like the digital economy and other emerging areas,' Kadir said.

 

The CECA covers trade in goods, services, investments and movement of people.

 

The Malaysian foreign minister also said that his country is interested in expanding defence cooperation with India, including procuring military platforms and hardware.

 

To a question on whether Malaysia is keen to procure BrahMos supersonic missiles from India, Kadir declined to comment but said ministries concerned of the two sides will look into all relevant issues for deepening defence ties.

The government will continue promoting the export of processed food products in place of raw agriculture commodities, said Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal while highlighting that the share of processed foods in the agri export basket has increased to 27 per cent from 14 per cent in the past decade.

 

After visiting stalls at the ongoing World Food India 2023 exhibition in Delhi, Barthwal said that over 1,000 buyers from abroad have come from 80 countries, including about 135 from the Middle East, at the invitation of Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (Apeda), Marine Products Export Development Authority (Mpeda), Spice Board, Tea Board and Coffee Board.

 

He said the priority will always be for the government to ensure sufficient availability for the 1.4 billion people of the country, and only the surplus has to be exported. Since the better price realisation comes from processed foods, the government would like exporters to process those raw products in the country and ship them after converting them to value-added products as per global demand.

 

Apeda, government’s key agri export promotion body, on Friday, signed an MoU with LuLu Hypermarket to work agri products in the global market.

 

The MoU, aimed at boosting exports of agricultural products to the Gulf Cooperation Countries (GCCs), was signed between Apeda Chairman, Abhishek Dev and Chairman-cum-Managing Director of LuLu Group, Mr Yusuf Ali MA at the World Food India 2023. The LuLu Group International (LLC) has its presence across the GCC, Egypt, India and the Far East with 247 stores in operation and 24 shopping malls.

 

As per the MoU document, LuLu Group will actively promote and showcase a wide range of products in APEDA basket of agricultural and processed food products in its retail outlets. A dedicated shelf space (special sections or aisles) will be allocated within LuLu stores to display Apeda’s products prominently and to enhance their visibility. Besides, Apeda and LuLu group will also engage with consumers through joint interactive events, sampling/tasting campaigns, season specific campaigns for fruits and vegetables, new product launch and the promotion of products arising from Himalayan/North Eastern States, organic products, according to an official statement by Commerce Ministry released Monday.

 

Apeda also facilitated signing of MoUs of Marketing Boards of Arunachal Pradesh, Jammu and Meghalaya as well as Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences & Technology with Lulu group aimed at boosting exports potential from Himalayan and North Eastern states, it said. Both Apeda and LuLu group would jointly facilitate export-oriented promotional programmes such as Buyer-Seller meets (BSM), trade fairs and road shows in association with the Indian missions abroad.

 

According to Apeda data, India’s export of 27 categorised products promoted by the agency has dropped 11 per cent to $ 10.54 billion during April-August of the current fiscal mainly due to curbs on wheat and non-basmati shipments.

 

Surpassing the target of $ 23.56 billion, exports of major agriculture and processed products (broadly divided under 27 categories) promoted by Apeda jumped 8.74 per cent to $26.72 billion during the last fiscal from $24.57 billion in 2021-22.

Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation, Shri Amit Shah addressed the National Symposium on ‘Promotion of Organic Products through Cooperatives’ organized by National Cooperative Organics Limited (NCOL)  as the Chief Guest in New Delhi today. Shri Amit Shah launched the logo, website and brochure of NCOL and also distributed membership certificates to NCOL members. On this occasion, many dignitaries including Union Minister of State for Cooperation Shri B.L. Verma, Secretary, Ministry of Cooperation and Chairman, NCOL were present.

 

In his address, Shri Amit Shah said that natural farming is one of the many goals set by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi in the year of Amrit Mahotsav for building a self-reliant India. In order to achieve this goal, we have to work on many fronts and move ahead by coordinating between them. He said that the goal of taking natural farming above 50 percent in India cannot be achieved without a multidimensional approach and these three works completed today are very important to achieve this goal. He said that it is a matter of great satisfaction for India that today we are not only self-reliant in the field of agricultural produce but are also surplus and we have to assess this journey. Shri Shah said that the bad consequences of excessive use of fertilizers and pesticides to increase production have started appearing before us today. Their excessive use has not only reduced the fertility, polluted the land and water but has also given many diseases. He said that Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has called upon farmers across the country to adopt natural farming. He said that in the last 5-6 years, lakhs of farmers of the country have adopted natural farming and the number of such farmers is gradually increasing. He added that the problem for both farmers and consumers arises without proper certification. To solve this problem, the Union Cabinet under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi approved the formation of National Cooperative Organics Limited (NCOL) on January 11, 2023.

 

Union Minister of Cooperation said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, National Cooperative Organics Limited has been formed to provide a platform to all the farmers doing natural farming across the country and to make arrangements for marketing of their products. He said that today 6 products of Bharat Organics have also been launched in the market. Shri Shah said that in the coming days, Bharat Organics will become the most trusted and biggest brand not only in India but also in the global organic market. He said that our track record shows, when cooperatives and farmers get the right platform, we perform best. He said that including the 6 products launched today, a total of 20 products will be launched by December this year and the farmers producing them will start getting its benefits. He said that the sale of 6 products is starting from today through 150 outlets of Mother Dairy and these products will also be available online. Along with this, with the concept of Organic Under One Roof, a retail outlet network of all organic products is also being started today.

 

Shri Amit Shah said that the government led by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has strengthened the agricultural economy by keeping the small farmers of the country at the centre. He said that if all farmers connect with natural farming through cooperatives, then we will be able to achieve the 4 goals i.e. every citizen should be healthy, land should be safe, water should be safe and our farmers should be prosperous set by the Prime Minster Shri Narendra Modi.

 

Union Minister of Cooperation said that in our country, crores of cattle farmers commercially produce cow dung every day. Its commercial use can bring a huge revolution and can also significantly increase income of the farmers. He said that today the website of National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) Soil Limited and organic fertilizer produced from Varanasi biogas plant also inaugurated. Cow dung should be used in land conservation, natural farming and increasing the income of farmers in the country. He said that NDDB and Gujarat State Fertilizers & Chemicals Limited (GSFC) have also registered a brand for high quality cow dung. They have also set up a cow dung gas plant with a capacity of 4000 cubic meter in Varanasi.

 

Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation said that due to the efforts made by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to strengthen cooperatives with the mantra of 'Sahakar se Samriddhi', the rural and agricultural sector of the country, small and marginal farmers, more than 8 lakh registered cooperative societies and 90 percent of the people of the country have joined the cooperative movement. He said that natural farming will reduce the demand for fertilizers and it will also increase the production of food grains. He said that the sooner we assimilate this new beginning, the more our country will move forward in the field of agriculture and for this the Modi government has taken many initiatives.

 

Shri Amit Shah said that National Cooperative Organics Limited is jointly promoted by Amul, National Cooperative Consumers’ Federation of India Ltd (NCCF), National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd (NAFED), National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) and National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC). It is launched with an authorized capital of Rs 500 crore. Till now, it has more than 950 members in Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Nagaland and membership applications from more than 2000 cooperative institutions have been received. He said that National Cooperative Organics Limited is a multipurpose initiative, which will give momentum and direction to the country's mission of land and water conservation and increasing the food production. This will be the biggest undertaking of the country in the next 5 years and will prove to be a big leap towards achieving Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s goal to provide better health to all the countrymen. Shri Shah said that this organization will also work as a platform for marketing, branding and export of the products of farmers engaged in natural farming. After integration, certification, testing, standardization, procurement, storage processing, branding, labeling, packaging and marketing of organic products, the entire export work will be done by National Cooperative Organics Limited, which will give recognition to our organic products in the global market in the coming days.

 

Union Minister of Cooperation requested Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS), Farmers Producer Organizations (FPOs) and progressive farmers across the country to associate with NCOL, strengthen the ‘Bharat Brand’ and make themselves prosperous through this brand. He said that every farmer associated with natural farming in the country should join National Cooperative Organics Limited. He added that whatever profit is earned from organic products in India and the world, should go directly into the bank accounts of the farmers. It has been decided to ensure that 50% of the price received above the Minimum Support Price (MSP) will be deposited directly into the farmer's bank account on per kilogram basis. Shri Shah said that the Modi government has decided that by the year 2024, more than 25,000 members will join NCOL and this organization has also started the work of creating a database of organic farmers. He expressed confidence that after the launch of ‘Bharat Brand’, India will stand very strongly in the world organic market in the next 10 years.

 

Shri Amit Shah said that to make a long-term market plan, it is very important to have a laboratory recognized by National Programme for Organic Production (NPOP) in every District and Tehsil of the country. He said that at present there are a total of 246 laboratories in the country, out of which 147 are private and 99 are of the government, but out of these only 34 labs are recognized by NPOP. Shri Shah said that with the Whole of Government Approach, the government has decided to set up about 100 mobile laboratories and 205 laboratories by next year in collaboration with Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and other government institutions. It will increase 300 laboratories and almost every district of the country will be covered, due to which testing and certification of land and products can also be done. Thus, there will be 439 laboratories across the country by the next year, which will provide great convenience to the farmers in getting their products certified and also to the National Cooperative Organics Limited in purchasing the certified products.

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Wednesday said the government is looking at easing certain restrictions for units in the special economic zones (SEZ) to promote the sector's growth.

 

SEZs in India are treated as foreign territories for trade and customs duties, with restrictions on duty-free domestic sales.

 

'We are looking at ways and means to liberalise some of these restrictions on SEZ units. It's under consideration...We are discussing it with all the stakeholders and hopefully that itself will give a significant boost to the SEZ units,' Goyal said here at an industry chamber function.

 

Regarding the industry's demand to extend benefits of the Remission of Duties or Taxes on Export Products (RoDTEP) Scheme to SEZs, he said the ministry will go about it 'cautiously'.

 

'At some point in time we will consider it once we are very confident that it will not lead to WTO non-compliance,' he added.

 

In these zones, the largest areas of exports are petroleum products and software.

 

Companies in SEZs are urging the government to permit them to sell their products in domestic tariff areas or domestic markets without paying the import duties that currently apply, similar to duty-free FTA imports.

 

SEZs have emerged as an important contributor to India's exports. Total exports from SEZs stood at USD 155.8 billion in 2022-23. These included USD 61.6 billion in merchandise and USD 94.2 billion in services exports.

At least 150,000 metric tons of pigeon peas bound for India are held up at ports in Mozambique awaiting export permission from customs despite multiple requests from sellers over the past few weeks, five industry officials said on Wednesday.

 

India, the world's biggest producer and consumer of pigeon peas, relies on imports during the final quarter of the year before the new crop harvest in January. Over half of India's imports of pigeon peas are sourced from Mozambique.

 

The delay in shipments has pushed up prices of the protein-rich staple, known in India as arhar or tur, used to make daal curry in the peak-consumption festive season.

 

'Stocks are currently held in port-based warehouses and sellers are incurring huge storage and re-fumigation costs,' said Suhas Chougule, managing director at MozGrain Lda, a local subsidiary of Ma'aden Saudi Arabia, based at Beira, Mozambique.

 

'Despite having all the necessary export documents per law, our 200 containers are stuck. The customs office in Mozambique is not granting permission nor are they giving any reason.'

 

The delay has lifted wholesale prices in India by nearly 10% in two months as stocks diminish during the lean supply season, adding to food inflation ahead of state elections this month and national polls due early next year.

 

However, a few exporters have obtained export permits, allowing them to ship 50,000 tons of pigeon pea to India, traders said.

 

In response to a Reuters query, Mozambique's agriculture ministry shared a statement issued in October that said it had cancelled phytosanitary certificates for goods in the customs process from Sept. 22 after finding 400 of them to be false or dubious, but added it had resumed licensing since then.

 

India's pigeon peas production in the 2023/24 season is expected to fall after lower rainfall in key crop areas in August and October.

 

India will need to import 1.2 million tons of pigeon peas in the year ending March 31, 2024, up from last year's 894,420 tons, the government estimates.

 

Satish Upadhyay, a Mumbai-based pulses importer, said shipment delays had caused a $100 per ton price increase in recent weeks.

 

'Mozambique is aware that India is in dire need of pigeon peas this year due to a poor local crop, and they are taking advantage of the situation,' he said.

 

Last month, India expressed concerns over shipment delays during a meeting between its consumer affairs secretary, Rohit Kumar Singh, and Mozambique's high commissioner in New Delhi, Ermindo A. Pereira.

 

During the meeting, Pereira assured his counterpart that necessary steps would be initiated to ensure smooth flow of pigeon pea exports to India, according to an Oct. 27 Indian government statement.

 

However, the situation in Mozambique hasn't changed, Bimal Kothari, chairman of the India Pulses and Grains Association, said.

 

'Mozambique seems to be exploiting India's supply shortage by delaying shipments and holding India's food security hostage,' Kothari said.

In fact, the continent presents a convenient avenue for the country to grow its exports by leveraging on logistical advantages, relations and existing trade agreements.

 

In his recent column in The Sunday Mail, President Mnangagwa indicated that Africa provides the strongest defence of Zimbabwe’s interests.

 

He also said Zimbabwe would strive to unlock economic opportunities from its good relations with countries on the continent.

 

The country’s economic diplomacy agenda — being spearheaded by the Second Republic through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade — is expected to pave the way for local products across the continent.

 

The focus on Africa is not by chance. It is a deliberate strategy rooted in the realisation that the continent has abundant opportunities, most of which have been exploited by countries from other continents.

 

For example, Africa has a huge market for meat, but it imports most of it from outside the continent. According to Trade Map, Africa’s meat and edible offal import bill grew to US$4,7 billion in 2022, up from US$4,5 billion a year earlier.

 

The biggest exporters of meat and edible offal to the continent last year were Brazil (US$1,4 billion), India (US$711 million), the United States (US$691 million), Netherlands (US$212 million) and Poland (US$202 million).

 

Other exporters to Africa accounting for a sizeable share are Spain, Belgium, South Africa, Türkiye, Germany and the United Kingdom.

 

The fact that Africa is prepared to look across the world for meat and edible offal must excite livestock farmers.

 

Meat market in Africa

 

The meat market in Africa is huge.

 

Statistics show that the continent is failing to meet its own demand for the product, as most countries are sourcing it from other continents. Currently, Egypt is Africa’s biggest importer of meat and edible offal. Frozen bovine meat constitutes the largest share of the imports at around US$1 billion.

 

Other top imports from the sub-sector in Egypt in 2022 were edible offal (US$186 million), fowl meat and edible offal (US$90 million), fresh or chilled bovine meat (US$21,2 million), and sheep or goat meat (US$10,1 million).

 

Leading suppliers of Cairo last year were India, Brazil, the US, Australia, Sudan, Paraguay and Colombia.

 

Closer to Zimbabwe is Angola, which is the second-biggest importer of meat and offal in Africa.

 

According to Trade Map, the country’s imports grew from US$356 million in 2021 to US$578,9 million in 2022.

 

Of last year’s total import bill of meat and edible offal in Angola, fowls, specifically chickens, accounted for the largest share (US$405,5 million), followed by swine meat (US$76 million), edible offals (US$50 million) and bovine meat (US$31,7 million).

 

In terms of source markets, the bulk of meat imports in Angola come from the US (US$195 million), Brazil (US$193,8 million), Portugal (US$21,6 million), Netherlands (US$21,4 million) and Poland (US$21,3 million).

 

Other top countries that import meat to Angola include Germany, Argentina, Belgium, Italy and Spain.

 

Considering that Luanda has a huge market for meat and is willing to buy from other continents, local exporters can take advantage of distance to benefit from the situation.

 

Local companies can also ride on existing trade instruments — especially the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Protocol on Trade, and the African Continental Free Trade Area.

 

South Africa is Africa’s third-largest importer and second largest in Southern Africa. However, South Africa’s imports have been fluctuating in recent years, recording US$403,6 million in 2022, US$524,3 million in 2021 and US$426 million in 2020.

 

Last year, imports of meat and edible offal in South Africa were largely made of fowl meat and edible offal (US$278,7 million), edible offal of other animals (US$54,5 million) and swine meat (US$51,7 million). Most of the meat imports in South Africa come from Brazil (US$222,8 million), the US, Argentina, Spain, the UK, Australia and Ireland.

 

In the SADC region, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has also been growing its meat imports, from US$99,1 million in 2021 to US$109,9 million in 2022.

 

ZimTrade — the national trade development and promotion organisation — has organised several programmes to link Zimbabwean exporters and buyers in the DRC, where interest in local products has been growing.

 

Engagements with leading buyers have shown a huge market for Zimbabwean beef in provinces such as Kinshasa, Haut-Katanga, Lualaba and Haut-Lomami.

 

Currently, most imports of meat and edible offal in the DRC come from Poland, Netherlands, Brazil, Belgium, Germany and Italy.

 

As it stands, there are buyers in the DRC that are prepared to import meat from Zimbabwe.

 

Local exporters who can supply consistently can engage ZimTrade for linkages with the leading distributors.