Anti-dumping advocacy group the FairPlay Movement has criticised the government for creating a bizarre "Catch-22" for the local poultry sector as it battles to recover from the worst outbreak of bird flu on record.
The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD) is effectively encouraging the industry to submit monetary claims for culling losses, it says, but in the same breath, telling it the dead birds carry no value in the market and don't require compensation. This has also prompted ongoing legal battles that date back for years.
Industry players are also advised there is no money to pay any claims in any case, it says, with founder Francois Baird telling News24: