Assessment of Cooperatives in the Poultry Industry - 2013.pdf - Seda

Research Report: Addressing the Needs, Opportunities and Challenges of Cooperatives
and Collectively Owned Enterprises in the Poultry and Related Industries
have been established by government.
Health trends have led to an increased demand for poultry as
opposed to other meat products. Consumption of mutton and
beef has declined while poultry and egg consumption
continues to rise.
The broiler industry is highly capital intensive and requires a
long planning cycle in order to produce. This limits entrants
into broiler production. Large companies dominate the poultry
industry, and are able to provide required infrastructure for
poultry value addition while the emerging sector requires
assistance in value addition.
The relative
affordability of
poultry makes it
an important
source of protein
for millions of
low-income South
Africans, thus
contributing to
the zero hunger
ambition of the
government
Cooperatives may be able to support in supply chain functions, specifically feed production (soya
bean and maize), hatcheries (day-old chicks), and abattoirs (slaughtering, dressing/packaging,
wholesaling and retailing). Broiler production is dominated by a few large producers. Small-scale
farmers are not able to compete with the bulk costs or quality the large producers can meet.
However, scope lies in the many support functions, in rural areas where there is limited access to
retailers and in the value chain outside of production.
A potential constraint to the growth of the domestic poultry industry is the emergence of strong
international competition and insufficient tariffs to protect the local industry from the cheaper
imports. If local poultry continues to be substituted by imported poultry the growth of the industry
may continue to decline.
Implications for the Cooperatives in the Poultry Industry:
The high numbers of small-scale farmers indicates that there is scope for small organisations such
as cooperatives to function within the industry
Health trends indicate a potential increase in the demand for poultry
Support functions and functions up and downstream in the value chain may also present
opportunity for cooperatives
2.8. Support
There are a number of agencies which provide support to cooperatives, in various forms, as part of
their mandate. The literature review in chapter three provides information around the formation of
some of these support functions. For example, the 1996 National Small Business Act gave rise to
SEDA.
The table below identifies organisations which provide support to cooperatives. It also details the
purpose and function, main services, target group (often broader than cooperatives), and
restrictions and fees.
20 | P a g e U r b a n - E c o n : D e v e l o p m e n t E c o n o m i s t s