Namibia holds breath as Norway reviews African meat imports

Namibia’s beef exports to Norway might be impacted by the Nordic country wanting to review African meat quotas.The Nationen, a Norwegian daily newspaper, reported that the trade pattern for African meat into Norway has changed and that its agriculture and food minister Geir Pollestad will now review changes to the quota system to see if it is in conflict with current agreements.Namibia and Botswana share an annual 3 200-tonne beef export quota to Norway under the generalised system of preferences (GSP) as well as the trade agreement between the Southern African Customs Union (SACU) and the European Free-Trade Association (EFTA).Norway serves as one of the most important and lucrative markets for the two countries’ beef sectors.Meatco has been Namibia&#039;s leading supplier of the quota over the years – and between 2013 and 2020, it led the way with a delivery of 10 400 tonnes of meat to the Norwegian quota.It is reported that Nortura, one of Norway&#039;s largest food producers, recently met up with the state-owned Botswana Meat Commission (BMC).BMC engages in the procurement, slaughtering, processing and marketing of beef and beef products in Botswana for sale in local and international markets.The reason for the meeting between the companies is said to have been new European Union (EU) regulations which ensure Norwegian meat companies very favourable prices for African beef. Instead of meat being bought through quotas from African countries, meat is now imported via the European market at a much more reasonable price.Economic cooperation“Some of the meat from SACU is now imported via the EU and at a different price than previously. The trading pattern has thus changed. We will go through the changes to get an overview of the development, and whether there are conditions that are in conflict with the agreements,” Pollestad apparently wrote in an email via his agriculture ministry’s press department.A trade agreement between the EFTA and SACU countries means, among other things, that a duty-free quota has been created for beef from Lesotho, Namibia and Botswana.The main aim of the free-trade agreement is to stimulate increased trade and economic cooperation between the parties, as well as to ensure that the EFTA states&#039; export goods have the same good conditions as the EU has in these markets.The 3 200-tonne quota Namibia and Botswana share is administered under two quota schemes.The GSP quota of 2 700 tonnes is allocated to importers from Namibia or Botswana on a ‘first come, first served’ basis.Meanwhile, a SACU and EFTA quota of 500 tonnes is available through a Norwegian auction to Namibia and Botswana.“In recent decades, Norway has imported beef from SACU. The imports have taken place within import quotas given in the free-trade agreement and the Norwegian GSP system for trade with developing countries. The framework for trade can be seen from the provisions of the free-trade agreement and our GSP system, as adopted by the Storting [the supreme legislature of Norway],” Pollestad wrote.New rulesA key difference that the EU has changed the rules for certificates of origin, he said.“In the past, the meat had to be imported directly from the country of origin to fall under the relevant quotas. Now that has changed. The beef can be exported to the EU and further into Norway. This is included in the SACU quota, but at a much lower price than the meat that is bought directly from Botswana and Namibia,” the Norwegian minister said.Meanwhile, the Namibian agriculture ministry said it would be premature to comment on the matter before it is informed of the changes to be made.“When we are informed with regards to reviews, we will look at protocols that might be affected see what changes and arrangements can be made accordingly,” spokesperson Jona Musheko said.

Namibia holds breath as Norway reviews African meat imports

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Namibian Sun 2024-11-15

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Namibia holds breath as Norway reviews African meat imports

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Namibian Sun 2024-11-15

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