LETTER: No end in sight to chicken wars
All parties must sacrifice a little so industry can grow
I have been following the “chicken wars” in the media for what feels like years. The plot seemingly never changes: a self-proclaimed efficient local industry cannot compete with allegedly dumped cheap imports and so applies for tariff relief from the government. While the application is considered a “war” breaks out between the opposing parties, with all sorts of statistical claims flying around, though the truth is never obvious to the uninformed.
Then government approves a tariff increase, the details of which seem to satisfy nobody. Months later, we read of a new tariff-increase application and the entire merry-go-round starts again. This time the authorities have adopted a different stance, and all sides are sitting around the table discussing some type of poultry master plan for SA. Included in all this is a negotiation that will include an agreement on increased tariffs, a concerted export drive, industry transformation and some vague aim for a harmonious future for all...
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