Agri SA welcome lifting of China wool ban
Agri SA says the jobs of some 35 000 agricultural workers were on the line when China slapped South Africa with a wool exports ban recently.
The federation's Christo Swart says Beijing became concerned over reports of an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in some parts of the country.
"We welcome the lifting of the ban. China saw that there was an outbreak in provinces such as the Eastern Cape where the bulk of the wool is produced.
"After we made it clear that there is no such outbreak, we made it clear that we follow protocol when it comes to the processing of wool. That gave them some peace of mind."
READ: Cattle movement banned amid foot and mouth outbreak
About 70% to 80% of our wool heads to China every year, generating an annual income of around R5 billion.
Swart says they are thankful for the government intervention that led to the ban being lifted this week.
"The important thing is if there is an outbreak, those areas must be immediately be isolated. They need to send in all the resources and to vaccinate animals. That is the important thing because all overseas counterparts want to see immediate action."
