Local sheep farmers and industry groups are now calling on Beijing to lift the ban. De Beer says there are more than 40,000 small-scale sheep farmers in South Africa who produce close to six million kilograms of wool annually. “Black farmers in South Africa make up about 18% of the wool production… and you compare that with other commodities where Black farmers make up roughly on average about 10% in commercial farming,” he said. For wool, Sihlobo said South Africa also sells to Mexico, the U.S. and elsewhere, but these are much smaller markets. The South African wool ban is not political retaliation, simply the move of a government concerned about contamination, but the ban has made evident the dangers of importing mainly to one country.

Source: Ethiopian News August 05, 2022 04:52 UTC