As foot-and-mouth disease continues to disrupt South Africa’s livestock sector, pressure on stud breeders and genetic progress is intensifying. Kobus Bester, representing the Stud Breeder Federation and the FMD Industry Coordination Council member, shares insights into the long-term impact of foot-and-mouth disease on South Africa’s red meat and stud breeding sector.
In this in-depth FMD Update discussion, Kobus Bester, representing the Stud Breeder Federation and the FMD Representative Group, shares critical insights into the long-term impact of Foot-and-Mouth Disease on South Africa’s red meat and stud breeding sector.
The discussion explores how ongoing FMD outbreaks have affected genetic progress, competitiveness, animal movement, auctions, access to elite genetics, and the use of AI. Kobus also unpacks the risks to national breeding programmes, performance recording, price discovery, and the financial sustainability of stud breeders.
The conversation highlights the growing importance of data, traceability, and biosecurity standards, including the role of SA Stud Book, and looks ahead to the policy changes and industry-wide interventions urgently needed to protect the stud breeding industry and rebuild confidence in the red meat value chain.
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