“NOT GUITLY! FOR PROFITEERING-NERPO TELLS COSATU”
14 Apr 2008
The Group Executive Director of the National Emergent Red Meat Producers Organisation (NERPO), Mr Aggrey Mahanjana has vehemently dismissed claims by Mr. Zwelinzima Vavi, the General Secretary of COSATU, that farmers are making profits in their produce at the expense of the poor. NERPO’s reaction is subsequent to COSATU’s call on workers and the general public to stage a protest against government, farmers and organised business over rapid, rocketing and unacceptable prices of food, electricity and fuel.
“We would like to put it categorically to COSATU and the public in general, that both commercial and emerging farmers are equally victimised by this “national crisis” as production costs far supersedes the rapid hikes in most particularly maize and fuel and this makes it virtually impossible for them to make any profits in their produce” Mahanjana explained
The exorbitant animal feed and fuel prices constitute about 80% of the farmers total monthly production and operational costs. The situation makes no business sense in pricing of their produce as these hikes remain perpetual and unpredictable. According to organised agriculture an increase of R1 in one litre of diesel can be translated to R1 billion increase in production cost of maize in particular.
“As a matter of fact, input cots have risen dramatically between the years 1990 and 2006 with fertilizer rocketing up to 252%, 434% in fuel, 169% on animal health and 264% on animal feed” he added. Cosatu is further alleged of ignorance on the matter at hand, in that the Competition Commission has found processors of various agricultural products guilty of the hikes and not a single farmer was investigated by the Commission on whether or not they are responsible for these hikes.
“Cosatu need to understand that farmers are price takers not price makers” Mahanjana concluded.
In response to the crisis, NERPO is mobilising organised agriculture and industry role players to seek the intervention of the Minister of Agriculture and Land Affairs, Ms Lulu Xingwana, to sought viable measures with which to relieve farmers of these huge losses in production while ensuring growth and sustainability of the agricultural sector.
NERPO is a mouthpiece of over 50 000 emerging livestock farmers who are currently contributing just over 6% of the total GDP.
Enquiries
Aggrey Mahanjana
Group Executive Director of NERPO
Tel +27 (0) 12 348 8566
Cell +27 (0) 82 556 7297
Website: www.nerpo.org.za
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