New centre fights foot-and-mouth disease

August 2025

IN RESPONSE TO THE CURRENT WIDESPREAD OUTBREAK OF FOOT-AND-MOUTH DISEASE (FMD), RED MEAT INDUSTRY SERVICES (RMIS) ACTIVATED A CENTRALISED OPERATIONAL CENTRE (OC) AT ITS HEADQUARTERS ON MONDAY, 9 JUNE 2025.

The OC will be led by a designated RMIS veterinarian and will oversee a team of veterinary professionals and industry representatives, along with a specialist public relations and public affairs agency, forming the FMD Working Group. The FMD Working Group will be mandated to develop and implement a structured, time-bound response to the outbreak, with medium- to long-term goals, including a focus on vaccination among other key areas.

The primary objective of this plan is to guide RMIS in addressing the current FMD situation in South Africa, with a strong focus on protecting red meat role-players to ensure the long-term sustainability and growth of the industry. This is critical not only for the red meat sector but also for South Africa’s broader agricultural economy, as the outbreak impacts the entire red meat value chain and poses a serious threat to the dairy industry and other sectors connected to red meat production.

Another key aim is to establish public-private partnerships (PPPs) at various levels to support the understaffed public veterinary sector by leveraging the expertise and capacity of the private sector.

IMMEDIATE RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE OC

• Finalising a three-month response framework to address urgent risks and establish a platform for long-term management. The medium-term plan will include two key components:
  • Expanding and supporting the capacity of veterinary services to enhance disease control.
  • Establishing FMD-free livestock compartments supplying all South African red meat abattoirs. 
• Coordinating with the Joint Operations Centre (JOC) to align with government and industry stakeholders.
• Evaluating and enhancing the Government Contingency Plan. The department has shared its contingency plan with the industry, which the FMD Working Group will review and provide feedback.
• Initiating a local vaccine production strategy, which includes assessing funding requirements, establishing an implementation timeline and developing a financing model supported by industry funding.
• Centralising stakeholder communication through the appointed veterinarian, who will report directly to RMIS chief executive officer, Dewald Olivier.
• Implementing an electronic movement permit system: A basic, structured electronic Farmer Declaration system will be developed, communicated and enforced.

RECEIVE FMD NEWS
To enable rapid information sharing during the FMD outbreak, RMIS has activated a real-time communication system through the RMIS Traceability Platform. Registered stakeholders, including farms, communal landholders, auction houses, feedlots, abattoirs, testing stations, meat processors and veterinary practices, will receive concise WhatsApp alerts as soon as new information becomes available.

These alerts include urgent disease notifications, regulatory changes, official statements and operational updates. While notifications are issued nationally, detailed context will also be provided at provincial and incident-specific levels to ensure relevance and clarity.

To receive real-time FMD notifications via WhatsApp, stakeholders must register their production unit on the RMIS Traceability Platform: https://rmis.co.za/rmis-traceability-platform/.

Publication: August 2025

Section: Pula/Imvula

Author: RMIS PRESS RELEASE, 6 JUNE 2025