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Mhlupheki Dube
THROUGHOUT my travels across various districts of the country I have noticed a common trend with regards to the state of livestock marketing infrastructure.
More often than not the infrastructure is in a state of severe neglect and dereliction.
Most of the structures are actually not being used anymore for their purpose which is holding of cattle auctions.
These structures are owned and by local authorities and it is their responsibility to ensure that they are properly maintained.
That can only properly take place if the infrastructure is in good state.
Buyers have lost animals which they would have bought at these auctions because of the poor state of handling pens.
This is a loss which no businessman wants to incur.
It is not entirely wrong to conclude that poor maintenance of cattle handling infrastructure at auction pens has also contributed to the death of cattle auctions in most districts.
The death of cattle auctions in most districts has led to the rise of the middlemen and buying agents for abattoir operators.
In fact, the two have grown significantly in some districts such that it is almost impossible for council to run auctions anymore.
Abattoirs are giving their agents motorbikes to cruise within the villages, going kraal by kraal buying animals.
Abattoirs are having a field day with this arrangement as they evade paying the cattle levy to the local authorities.
One important question to ask is whether this situation where middlemen and agents of abattoirs are buying animals outside auction system is progressive or not in terms of livestock marketing.
It is my view that while these middlemen and agents provide gap filling in terms of livestock market provision they cannot be left to be the main market that is available to livestock farmers within the community.
Granted, they usually provide an immediate market especially for someone who is looking for a quick sale but the prices which they offer to the farmers are usually subdued.
This is not rocket science but basic business principle of minimising your costs to increase your returns.
Middlemen would want to buy as many cattle for very little while agents are usually remunerated on commission basis and hence they are also motivated to push the numbers of animals they buy through suppressing the buying price. Local authorities therefore need to work extra hard to revive the cattle auctions so that farmers can sell their animals through an open bidding system which promotes better prices.
It is common knowledge that where these cattle auctions are properly developed the auction centre becomes a marketing hub for the community where all kinds of commodities are sold and bought.
The local authority will realise the much needed revenue from these sales but we must hasten to point out that this levy collection should predominantly be used for livestock markets development.
This means maintenance of the cattle handling infrastructure and the actual organisation of the sales.
It should not be just be about collecting the revenue and supplementing the salary coffers.
Revival of these cattle auction centres and the auctions themselves need strategies especially around collecting the cattle levy from the private buyers who are your middlemen and the agents of abattoirs.
One strategy could be for the local authority to liaise with the Veterinary Department such that a cattle movement permit is issued to buyers who have paid the levy to council.
This should reign in the private buyers as it is known that in most cases where the cattle auctions died it was mostly due to the underhand operations of private buyers who would incite farmers to refuse whatever amount was offered at the auction sale and they would top that amount with a few dollars.
This they managed to do because they would evade the council levy and thus have a small latitude to indulge the farmer for a temporary period until the local authority organised auctions are dead.
After that they would now offer ridiculously low prices which farmers could do nothing about except accepting it as they no longer had another alternative market.
It is therefore, my view that local authorities should augment the revival of Cold Storage Company by reviving the livestock marketing infrastructure as well as the auctions as these will become the major source of animals for CSC.
Uyabonga umntakaMaKhumalo.
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