KAMPALA – As the demand for Uganda’s beef across the world continues to rise due to the country’s organic production systems as well as unique genetics and the favourable environment, the government has been urged to create more feedlots to increase production.
Collins Muyanja, the CEO of Ranchers Finest asked sector players including the government to draw a deliberate strategy to grow the quantum in terms of the farmers involved in ranching and to increase the the number of feedlots.
A feedlot is a facility that uses intensive animal farming including Animal fattening to prepare animals for slaughter. Feedlots are used for beef cattle, but also for other animals such as swine, horses, sheep, turkeys, chickens, and ducks.
Addressing journalists during the guided tour of the UGX15.5 billion meat processing facility in Kawempe, Muyanja said the development will support the production of the right quality required for the export market.
“As a country, if we make it a deliberate strategy to grow the value chain, definitely we can meet the demand in the region,” Muyanja said.
“In the DRC, they shouldn’t be importing products from as far as Australia, which they do at the moment and the reason for that is that as a region, we are not meeting the capacity required,” he added.
Growing Demand for processed meat
Muyanja said since the outbreak of Foot and mouth disease in Uganda, there has been a surging demand for processed meat as consumers become more cautious of quality.
“We saw a huge spike in demand for our products since the FDM outbreak,” said Muyanja during a media tour of the facility on Monday, March 25, 2024.
“At the moment, we don’t meet the demand because we don’t have enough supplies. Both local and regional demand is much higher than we can satisfy,” he added.
Uganda’s beef production, which comes mainly from indigenous breeds farmed along the country’s ‘Cattle Corridor’, increased by a huge percentage in the last decade.
Uganda has over 14.5 million cattle, 16 million goats, and 4.5 million sheep. The beef industry is carried out country-wide but more especially in the cattle corridors of South Western and North Eastern Uganda regions in Uganda.
To meet rising demand largely driven by population growth, the Ugandan government, Muyanja said there is a need for all stakeholders to jointly grow the value chain starting with breeders and multipliers that will supply farmers with the desired breeds.
“We work through specific farmers because of traceability but also there plans to grow that value chain and it will keep growing as we move along,” said Muyanja.
Uganda?s beef is ranked 5th best in the world because of its yellow fat that does not contain cholesterol mainly because the cows are naturally grazed. An estimated 90% of the national cattle herd is kept under pastoral and mixed smallholder farming systems. Commercial beef ranching is limited accounting for less than 10% of the national herd. The main sources of meat are the culled animals and excess steers in the various farming systems.
Exports are still limited because of the prevalence of diseases and the high demand of the national market. To address this gap, Muyanja said Ranchers Finest has installed a UGX 15.5 billion production facility to support meet the market standards.
“We want to assure you that at Ranchers Finest, we hold ourselves to the highest standards of safety and hygiene. We understand the importance of producing food that is not only delicious but also safe for consumption. The health and well-being of our customers are at the forefront of everything we do,” he said.
“It’s important to understand that FMD does not affect the safety of meat products that have undergone proper, traceability, processing, and inspection, as is always the case at Ranchers Finest.
“From rigorous sanitation protocols to state-of-the-art equipment, every step of our production process is carefully monitored and controlled”.
Ranchers Finest has invested over 4 million dollars in this world-class processing facility.
He said that the Ranchers Finest franchisee and distribution expansion project is expected to create new employment opportunities for over 3000 youth and women in the value chain including distribution teams, roadside, and street grillers.
