There has been a decline in the production of eggs and chickens and this has resulted in SA relying on imported chickens to meet demand. Briefing Parliament’s portfolio committee on agriculture, forestry and fisheries on Tuesday about the outbreak of the avian flu, the South African Poultry Association (Sapa) said the culling of birds to contain the outbreak had resulted in a loss of R954m in the sector. Sapa confirmed that no new outbreaks had been reported on commercial farms since mid-January. However, farms affected have had to cull all birds and recall and destroy all eggs as part of measures to control the spread of the virus. Farms also had to shut down production for up to six months while they embarked on surveillance and cleaning. Rosina Semenya, the portfolio committee chairwoman, was concerned that 1,300 people had lost their jobs and asked if small-scale farmers and traders were being compensated. "We have received the report from SA Poultry and are awaiting reports fro...
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