High court orders farmers to return ‘missing’ cattle

Produce the weaners.

That is the order a high court judge in Makhanda has issued to four developmental farmers in the Joe Gqabi district contracted to raise 200 young Agrade beef weaners as part of a production contract.

The farmers say the cattle died in 2019, ostensibly as a result of severe drought conditions in the region.

Unsubstantiated statements to the court by one or another of the farmers included claims that the drought caused “the unfortunate death of the weaners and some of my own livestock”, and “no beef weaners survived”.

No details were provided on when, or over what period, the weaners had died, or what happened to the carcasses.

But the Agribee Beef Fund, a government-underwritten initiative to bring small-scale farmers into larger commercial farming operations, does not believe the weaners were lost in the drought and has held out for the return of the 50 animals allocated to each farmer — 200 animals in total.

And judge Murray Lowe agreed, ordering the four operators to produce the weaners immediately.

The weaner growing project is part of the beef industry’s programme to transform the local sector. Farmers Sipiwo Makinana, Sive Ngudle, Monwabisi Ngqoshana and Siphe Joyi all have small farms in Joe Ggabi.

They were contracted in writing with the fund in 2018 to take on the grazing and upkeep of 50 beef weaners each. The farmers’ contribution included providing secured pasturing and water, and growing the animals from 200kg up to about 350kg.

Fund co-ordinators in the area monitored the growth of the weaners on a monthly basis.

At the point that the weaners would reach their required weight, estimated to be about July 2019, the developmental farmers were obligated to sell the animals to bigger feedlot operations.

Each of the four would retain the profits generated on the sale — up to R2,800 per weaner, according to court papers and based on the income of the best performing farmer in the scheme.

However, due to the drought, the end of the growth cycle was extended to November 2019.

And when fund representatives started collecting weaners from other farmers in the area participating in the scheme, they experienced problems in securing animals from the four, who either absented themselves from meetings or blocked

Drought caused the unfortunate death of the weaners and some of my own livestock, and no beef weaners survived

the representatives from accessing the farms.

The farmers simply stated that “no beef weaners survived” the 2019 drought.

Subsequently, in a meeting in Mthatha on February 11, the four farmers told the fund they wanted to hold on to the weaners for breeding purposes.

The fund told the court it had no reason to believe the animals had died.

Previous visits to the farms of Ngudla and Makinana showed weaners “in good condition”, and there were no reports from other surrounding farmers of calamity and disease.

An interim interdict was issued against the four farmers on May 13.

Lowe has now made final an order that each of the farmers must return 50 weaners — as described in an induction form — to the fund, within 24 hours of his order.

He found there was no suggestion at all that the four had ever mentioned to the fund’s representatives that the weaners were at risk as a result of the drought or that, later, they had indicated the animals had in fact died.

He also authorised the sheriff, if necessary, to enter the respective farmers’ premises to fetch the weaners.

Each farmer was interdicted from selling or in any way disposing of any of the 50 weaners allocated to him or her.

They must also return all unused feed reserves, cleaning materials, veterinary medicines and vaccines.

The judge also cancelled the beef weaner production agreement.

Efforts to reach officials of the fund or their legal representative to ascertain if the weaners had been recovered were unsuccessful throughout Monday.