The Ugandan government is planning to register all farmers with their cattle, and even issue the animals with birth certificates.
On Tuesday, Ugandan Minister for Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries Mr Vincent Ssempijja announced that this move was due to demands from the international market which requires that countries should have proof of the source of their food for the European market.
"They want to know where the [meat and crop] products are coming from. They have been impounding and banning all consignments from Uganda if they find one box with issues,” he said.
Speaking during the official opening of the National Agricultural Show, Mr Ssempijja insisted on the need for registration.
“Farmers will be registered and their products are given barcodes so that if they find a problem with one box, they look for the source and sort out the problem. We cannot enter lucrative markets unless farmers register," he said while in Jinja, southern Uganda.
He went ahead to reveal why the cattle need to have a birth certificate.
"For cattle farmers, it is going to be worse. You will be registered as a farmer, the cow will be registered, numbered and will have a birth certificate because the importers of our products demand meat for cows aged between 15 to 24 months. So we are going to sell [the meat] depending on their age," he added.
In September, a team of auditors from the European Union will visit Uganda to confirm the registration of farmers producing food for Europe. The aim of the registration is to make sure farmers benefit directly.
Uganda President Yoweri Museveni argued Ugandans to be more competitive to benefit from the international market.
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