Politicians need to resolve uncertainty
around agricultural policy, said Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Deputy
Minister Pieter Mulder.
"The biggest problem at present in
agriculture is the uncertainty about land and uncertainty about further
government interference in agriculture," he told the Afrikaner Cattle
Breeders' Association centenary in Thabazimbi, according to his office.
Agricultural uncertainty was caused by
irresponsible propaganda statements which sought short-term political gain,
said Mulder.
Political will was needed to take the right
decisions about land reform and less state interference in agriculture. Land
reform was linked to food security.
"Forty percent of all cattle in South
Africa belong to communal and small-scale farmers," he said.
"The problem is that these farmers only
contribute five percent to the meat production in the country."
If this percentage could be increased, it
could make a huge contribution to addressing poverty in rural areas.
Afrikaner cattle had helped to provide food,
milk and transport to South Africans, through the association.
"The fact that this breed of cattle is
depicted on monuments, honoured by poets and praised in traditional songs,
confirms the important role which it has played in the last hundred
years," said Mulder.
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