The Southern African Feed Manufacturers’ Association (SAFMA) was officially launched following an agreement at the 4th Global Feed & Food Congress in Sun City, South Africa, under the auspices of representatives from the International Feed Industry Federation (IFIF) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
The newly formed SAFMA aims to bring together representatives from countries located in the south of the continent including South Africa, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia and Mauritius, to form a regional feed manufacturers association. The association will hope to bring harmonization to the feed industry of the region and to help promote its policy of 'safe feed for safe food'.
IFIF Chairman, Mario Sergio Cutait, welcomed the formation of the SAFMA. Cutait said "Africa will play a vital part in the global feed and food value chain in the years to come, and just like FeedLatina, this new feed organization for Southern Africa is an important IFIF supported initiative to strengthen the global feed industry and to start the process to provide Africa with one voice."
He added, "for example, SAFMA will be able to support the feed industry and regulators through the IFIF / FAO Feed Manual of Good Practices designed to increase safety and feed quality at the production level."
Executive Director of the South African Animal Feed Manufacturers Association (AFMA) De Wet Boshoff explained that they "envisage a regional feed manufacturers’ body that can play a role in the harmonization of legislation and regulations in the region in order to enhance effective trade between member countries as well as creating a self-regulating regional industry with the same vision, namely safe feed for safe food."
