Pretoria: Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen has announced the establishment of an Industry-Government Task Team to strengthen South Africa’s response to animal diseases, specifically focusing on foot-and-mouth disease (FMD). The task team, which includes representatives from government and the red meat industry, will work to improve the prevention, management, and control of animal diseases.
According to South African Government News Agency, the task team will report directly to the value chain roundtables, which bring together all stakeholders in the livestock sector. The Minister’s announcement came during a media briefing on Monday, 1 September 2025, where he outlined critical interventions to curb persistent FMD outbreaks across several provinces.
The task team was established following a strategic bush meeting, the Bosberaad, convened in July by the Department of Agriculture in partnership with the Agricultural Research Council (ARC). At the meeting, Steenhuisen highlighted the fragmented nature of current responses and the lack of sufficient enforcement and coordination, which have contributed to the persistence of outbreaks.
Key measures proposed at the meeting included revising control zones, expanding capacity for sampling and diagnostics, increasing access to vaccines, and strengthening livestock identification and traceability systems. Stakeholders also emphasized the importance of enforcing biosecurity, warning that without it, containment measures would remain compromised.
Providing an update on the country’s FMD status, Steenhuisen confirmed that 900,000 vaccine doses worth R72 million had been procured from the Botswana Vaccine Institute for the current financial year. The first 500,000 doses arrived in June and were used to vaccinate cattle in KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, Gauteng, North West, and Free State. The remaining doses will be distributed to provinces experiencing active outbreaks, including Free State, Mpumalanga, North West, and Gauteng.
Currently, there are 274 unresolved outbreaks across KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, Free State, North West, and Mpumalanga. Positive cases have been confirmed in various cattle farming systems, including commercial beef herds, animal breeding, feedlots, dairy cattle, and communal herds. In KwaZulu-Natal, outbreaks continue to spread westward, with confirmed cases in several municipalities.
Investigations suggest both farm-to-farm transmission and pinpoint introductions linked to livestock movements where isolation protocols were not observed. Current outbreak cases include 54 in Gauteng, 26 in North West, nine in Mpumalanga, and five in the Free State. Steenhuisen urged farmers to comply with legislation and biosecurity protocols, expressing concern over reports of farmers moving cattle showing clinical signs of the disease without reporting them.
All livestock farmers are encouraged to cooperate fully with veterinary officials, report suspected cases immediately to state veterinary services, and refrain from moving animals showing clinical signs.