A pilot project in Bethulie, Free State, is helping smallholder livestock farmers adopt traceability technology amid South Africa's red meat export challenges from foot-and-mouth disease outbreaks.
South Africa's red meat industry faces significant hurdles due to foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreaks, which have halted beef exports this year and strained a sector reliant on international markets. To restore confidence, the industry is implementing a national traceability system through the Red Meat Industry Services (RMIS) Traceability Platform. Phase 2 of this platform, recently launched, enables API integration with digital livestock management systems, creating a unified framework from farm to fork.
Large commercial farms can afford the required radio frequency identification (RFID) tags, databases, and systems, but smallholder and communal farmers struggle with the costs and technical demands. Daniël Rautenbach, co-founder of Pointr Solutions, highlighted this barrier: “For you to register [on the RMIS platform] there is a certain purchase price of ability and of technical skills. If you do not have it, then you lose access to the market.”
In response, Pointr Solutions initiated a pilot in Bethulie, a small Free State town, to equip local communal farmers with these tools. The project provides free RFID ear tags—sponsoring 500 initially—and hands-on training to integrate their data with the RMIS platform. This setup allows farmers to trace livestock, comply with export standards, and access formal markets for better prices, rather than informal ones.
Challenges extend beyond technology to connectivity, finance, and digital literacy. Jason Kümm of AgriSA noted, “The greatest challenge in most rural communities remains the lack of reliable connectivity,” alongside high costs and limited training. Abrie Rautenbach from Absa emphasized financial access issues, with the bank offering training and blended finance products.
Pointr addresses literacy gaps through a six-week certification program for farmers and workers, covering basics like email and Excel. Rautenbach explained, “The idea of the programme is to give [them] a certificate... so that even matriculants... can signal to the farmers ‘I have the skills to be a good resource for you in this digital world.’” If successful, the initiative plans to register every livestock unit in the community on a central database.
Experts view traceability as essential for premium markets, both domestic and international. Kümm added, “Tech and traceability are going to become a standard part of operation within agriculture.” This project demonstrates how targeted support can equalize opportunities in a digitizing industry.