SOUTH Africa has granted Zambia, access to its pure honey market following what it terms as Zambia’s compliance to South Africa’s sanitary import requirements.
This is contained in a media statement released to the media by Press Secretary at the Zambian High Commissioner in South Africa Nicky Shabolyo.
According to correspondence dated 25th September, 2015 from South Africa’s Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Zambia will now be able to export its pure honey into South Africa after the National Plant Protection Organisation (NPPO) of Zambia confirmed compliance to the requirements.
“The National Plant Protection Organisation of South Africa (NPPOZA) hereby wishes to inform the National Plant Protection Organisation (NPPO) of Zambia that after the NPPO of Zambia confirmed compliance to the sanitary import requirements for South Africa with regard to the importation of pure honey, a market access for pure honey from Zambia into South Africa has been granted,” the letter addressed to the Zambia Agricultural Research Institute and signed by Mr. Kgabo Matlala, Manager for International Plant Health Standards under the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of South Africa, said in part.
Mr. Matlala said that issuance of import permits for the importation of pure honey from Zambia into South Africa had already started.
“In our efforts to facilitate safe trade within the region, we look forward to future collaboration between the two NPPOs (National Plant Protection Organisations),” Mr. Matlala said in the letter.
And Zambia’s High Commissioner – Designate to South Africa, His Excellency Mr. Emmanuel Mwamba has welcomed the development saying this will go a long way in contributing to the improvement of lives of most rural Zambians and consequently to the development of the country’s economy.
Mr. Mwamba said it was encouraging that the long-standing issue had now been resolved and urged that all those trading in the commodity should ensure that they observe the conditions that Zambia and South Africa have agreed on through their respective government wings.
He, however, pointed out that some of the import requirements that still regulated the trade remained stringent and that Zambia would monitor the situation and engage South Africa to look at possibilities of relaxing some of the areas.
Under the permit which has just been issued, the honey should come from a country or zone free of Nosema ceranae (which is a small parasite that affects honey bees), or the honey should have been tested and found free of Nosema ceranae.
Pure honey shall only be packaged in closed and sealed new, unused, uncontaminated containers.
The permit also stipulates that on arrival of the consignment at the port of entry, a random sample may be drawn and sent to a laboratory for testing of Paenibacillus larvae (which causes American foulbrood disease, a highly contagious disease of bacterial origin affecting the larval and pupal stages of honeybees).
Should Paenibacillus larvae and Nosema ceranae be detected, notification of non-compliance shall be communicated to Zambia and all imports of honey shall be subjected to irradiation or sent back. South Africa will then advise Zambia of the actions to be taken.
All the honey is further required to be quarantined in Zambia at an approved quarantine facility by the department of veterinary services, at which point a sample will be drawn by a veterinary approved person and sent to an accredited laboratory for analysis of Nosema Ceranae and pollen. A valid certificate of analysis has to be obtained indicating the source of pollen, the lack Nosema Ceranae spores before a sanitary certificate can be issued.
Obviously E Mwamba and his small boys with their low self esteem and simple minds will celebrate this, but truth be told ..this is shameful that is is even making headline news. South African has been importing all sort of their rubbish into Zambia from the day Apartheid ended and why have they take this long to return the gesture? Ati Zambia ya Fiko..really? Is that the reason why they banned our important. If the leadership had any pride in them , they should also have banned all South Africa important into Zambia.
Zambain sweet Potatoes are the best, but are not allowed into SA because they will easily kill the market for their useless watery ones..and there are many more things Zambia can export into SA, but out leaders just accepts these silly bans. It it time we take a tit for…
It is time we take a tit for tat approach like Nigerians when dealing with these South Africans.I don’t think it was really FIKO as they claim. They just banned Zambian imports to protect their market. I like the way Nigerian puts them in their right place and we need to do the same and All Zambia products should have access to South African Markets they way South African goods have access to Zambia Markets. Period
You will the issue is that most PF officials are sales reps for South African manufactures.
Zambian honey is well loved and known in Germany where it is imported because it is pesticide free. Who is little South Africa to place silly standards on it. These racists that are still running institutes in South Africa of course know their Boer counterparts in Zambia eat and enjoy these very products they are blocking
The customs duty in the European Union is 17.3 per cent for natural honey. This duty can be reduced
through the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), provided that it can be
proven that the honey originates from Zambia. Since Zambia belongs to the group of
least developed countries (LDCs), it benefits from the Everything but Arms initiative.
This implies that the duty is abolished all together, as long as the Zambian exporter can
provide the EU importer with a certificate of origin, issued by the Zambian Revenue
Authority. In order to obtain such a certificate, a product must fulfill the rules of origin
for that specific product. The rules of origin in the GSP state that the honey must be
“wholly obtained” in the country of origin.
According to the only current exporter,…
only current exporter, Forest Fruits Limited, gaining access to preferential
treatment for honey exports is not a problem in Zambia.
Don’t you mean Belgium?
We are talking of ending hunger at household level and sustaining our forex reserves yet we still allow south african chain stores to bring in agro products like tomatoes, onions, potatoes etc which are readily grow by our local farmers. To promote economic growth we need to ban importation of such items, then you will see hunger being eradicated.
The problem is that a lot of the corrupt PF bosses are sales reps for South African produce in Zambia. That is why the local producers are disadvantaged
Zambia is an approved country for honey exports to the EU, a by far bigger market than protectionists in RSA this is where EuroBond funds should be invested in the organisations and agriculture officers out there in North Western Province which is the major honey and beeswax producing area in Zambia but since we have myopic leadership who go to RSA even for basic medical checkups and worship SA products like the bible…they are too weak to stand to them or play hardball with them.
Indeed we are fools in zambia. all these conditions and someone is celebrating. hungry lion is bringing gmo chickens and chips from rsa without any condition given to them. Why should we always be seen to be dancing to their music? Lord we deserve better.
The RSA will use that selfsame honey and sell it back to our docile selves for a profit in packaged form in their supermarkets in the very shopping malls we worship…so much for value addition.
Pleas GRZ keep this a local co-op operation to benefit rural groups of bee keepers. Because next through corruption we will be seeing Chinese investors being granted licences for honey production by these corrupt PF pipo and local producers squeezed out.
Surely is this information we should even be publicizing proudly…this is very shameful and disgraceful for us Zambians to being granted export permits from the South Africans when we import absolutely everything from there in our toilets, kitchens and our bars ..folly of the highest order…go in those RSA supermarkets in those RSA Shopping Malls in Lusaka and you will be disgusted even shoe polish is imported from Kenya.
Mwamba or whatever title he so wishes to be called, should be ashamed of himself ….we know he has other political aspirations and will even try to milk a stone for political mileage if it were possible.
Zambians need to wake up from their docility and should start banning some of this produce so our farmers can also benefit from this RSA investment.
Somehow this news will offend a lot of UPND cadres and they will talk about all sorts of rubbish.
Whats this got to do with your useless Political Parties in opposition? This is the selfsame mindset that is anchoring the country to the dark ages….surely do you not feel for your people and country?
Small minds celebrate small achievements
People like the above blogger don’t relies that the bulk of our honey exports as at 2008 was destined for Belgium(60%), then UK (18%), followed by US (10%), Noway, France and even Botswana(1%)….the RSA they so worship doesn’t even feature and RSA only interested in one way of traffic yet they send all sorts of their rubbish to us.
It doesn’t pain them….they would rather debate about useless by elections and useless campaigns.
Jay Jay. Get off your lazy benefits bum and get a job for starters! This is an opportunity for our people, but you frown on it. Why? You are the numpties that would take our country to those ages if allowed to be anywhere near the corridors of power
@Courvoisier
Its clear you would rather trade insults like your empty tin politicians than brainstorm issues… I have invested a lot in self education and self knowledge to be on welfare and its never an option for me.
Back to the topic as to this being a benefit to us at what cost? Your own brothers are vetting and testing our produce for diseases at their port of entry when ours is the purest rich organic honey on the market; Do you not find that insulting…the only issues concerning the quality of our honey, is two major problems which is Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) content is often high due to prolonged exposure to high temperatures…it is a break-down product of fructose (one of the main sugars in honey), it forms slowly during storage and very quickly when honey is heated…
I only able to see frustrated comments from bloggers who seem to be shaming their political opponents, the easy way out is to protect our Agric industry. Ati Tit for Tat? With who? That can’t work lets just concentrate on building the industry by making sure our farming blocks are supported adequately. Instead of condemning let’s learn what they do right. For example if you travel through SA farming block in the free state you will see how those boers do serious farming.
Jay jay! it’s because you buy the same products you re referring to as rubbish. SA has SABS marked on their products do we have that? It’s like our ZBS doesn’t even exist.
The big mind ,keep on losing election. You will die with heart attack because of bitterness.