Irish beef exports `threaten processors in SA'

MILLIONS of pounds of heavily subsidised Irish beef is being dumped on the South African market, where it is threatening the livelihood of local producers, according to a new report.

The dumping of EU beef has caused mass layoffs in the food processing industry in South Africa and depression among farmers, according to the report from Christian Aid.

The agency claims Irish beef accounted for more than 95 per cent of the 47,000 tons of EU beef exported to South Africa last year. However, this figure is disputed by the Department of Agriculture, which says only 20 per cent of the beef was Irish. It is thought much of the beef identified as Irish may have been sourced in other EU countries by Irish exporters.

The trade is worth an estimated £25 million a year to producers here, according to An Bord Bia. EU subsidies to beef producers vary depending on the animal and type of cut, but a typical subsidy is worth about £500 a ton, or about half the cost of the meat sold to South Africa.

The flood of beef, most of it low-quality, is destabilising the agricultural sector in South Africa at a time when this is particularly vulnerable following the ending of apartheid. It has also been linked to slow progress in addressing the "appallingly low" pay of farm workers in rural areas, who earn about an average of £50 a month.

"The practice of beef dumping does nothing to assist an already beleaguered agricultural sector and its related industries in South Africa and neighbouring countries in the region," the report states.

A spokesman for the Department of Agriculture pointed out that export subsidies had been cut by almost one-third since the start of the year. However, Trocaire and other groups are pressing for their complete removal.

The EU exports exploit the fact that, for historical reasons, South Africa is classified as a developed country, rather than a developing one, in spite of the relative poverty of most of its black population. As a result, it enjoys less protection against imports and qualifies for lower export tariffs than its neighbours.

Exports have increased six-fold since 1993, as EU beef prices dropped following the BSE scare and the resulting crisis of confidence worldwide n beef. British exporters used to dominate the market but following the South African government's decision to ban beef from the UK early last year, Irish companies have benefited massively.

Because of the high subsidies available, South Africa has become one of the most lucrative destinations for EU beef. In 1993, only 0.6 per cent of the Union's beef exports went there, but this rose to 5.1 per cent in 1995. Last year, over 95 per cent of the meat was mechanically deboned frozen beef, of low quality.

Although the South Africans tried to make imports more expensive by devaluing the rand last year, EU exports remained high. Christian Aid says there is evidence that the European Commission regularly adjusted export subsidies to shadow the depreciation of the rand.