The Sunday Mail
Emmanuel Kafe and Veronica Gwaze
Bulk meat suppliers have become the chief buyers of meat from diseased animals, most of which are succumbing to January Disease (theileriosis).
The tick-borne disease continues to decimate herds in most rural communities, and villagers have had to desperately sell off unhealthy animals in order to salvage as much financial benefits as they can.
And the toxic combination of desperate farmers and greedy meat traders is now increasingly finding itself on dinner tables in some homes in urban areas.
Our investigations in some of the affected areas last week revealed that an unholy alliance between greedy buyers, desperate farmers and unscrupulous abattoirs has since emerged, and is increasingly becoming entrenched.
The presence of wholesale meat traders was quite noticeable.
It is now the norm to occasionally come across trucks, some laden with cattle, frenziedly driving up and down rugged rural plains, particularly in Mashonaland West.
In some instances, they are purchasing sick cattle for a little as US$50, while a “fresh, salvageable carcass” costs as low as US$20.
It is believed that most of the cattle are finding their way into reputable abattoirs.
While witnesses volunteered information that they were dealing with some of the well-known companies, most abattoirs who spoke to this publication professed ignorance.
A hostile official from Bellevue Abattoir, who refused to identify herself, curtly ended the conversation when the subject was broached.
“Why are you bothering us? I am sorry, I have no comment with regards to that story,” she said before hanging up.
Subsequent repeated calls went unanswered.
Some abattoirs shifted the blame to “dodgy middlemen”.
Surrey Meats, a sister company of Sabie Meats, said it subscribes to “strict regulations” that make it impossible to buy “carcasses from desperate cattle owners”.
“We are a FSSC 22 000 food safety satisfied meat company and have strict regulations to adhere, thus we cannot be in the business of selling and buying carcases from desperate cattle owners,” said the company in a statement to The Sunday Mail Society.
“We only slaughter live animals, and our meat is safe for consumption. We also do checks on drugs to ascertain withdrawal period. Super beef is largely unaffected by this disease and our supers are fed from the farm.”
The FSSC 22000 Food Safety System Certification provides a framework for effectively managing an organisation’s food safety responsibilities.
FSSC 22000 is fully recognised by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) and is based on existing ISO Standards.
Mashonaland East-based Binder Abattoir said there is need for coordinated efforts to eliminate malpractices in the beef industry.
“We have set aside resources just to make sure that we assist Government deal with this challenge. As Binder, we feel it is our responsibility to assist local farmers since our business highly depends on the wellness of their herds,” said Binder operations director Mr Jamie Nel.
