FMD restrictions partially lifted. What it means for meat, milk and livestock movement

Vacuum-packed Nature’s Reserve beef cuts in a cardboard box at a Meatco facility. Photo: Meatco

The Directorate of Veterinary Services has eased foot-and-mouth disease controls everywhere except //Kharas. Livestock auctions and exports are still on hold.

Namibia has partially lifted its foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) restrictions. The Directorate of Veterinary Services announced the changes on 27 September 2026 in Veterinary Public Notification No. 16 of 2026.

The ministry says preliminary tracing and livestock inspections show the outbreak is still confined to the //Kharas Region. Cattle that moved from the infected Karasburg-district farm to Otjozondjupa before the outbreak was detected have been traced and tested negative, so that herd is cleared.

North of the Veterinary Cordon Fence
Restrictions on movement within the area are lifted with immediate effect. Cooked meat and pasteurised milk and butter may move from north to south of the fence under normal protocols. Some cross-fence movement of cloven-hoofed animals and certain animal products remains restricted.

Countrywide
Movement and trade are allowed again for cooked and processed meat products, pasteurised milk and milk products, and hides processed up to wet-blue.

South of the fence, excluding //Kharas

• Raw meat already in registered abattoirs, butcheries and cold storage may move again if its origin is documented.
• Meat bought from retailers or butcheries may be transported with proof of purchase.
• Livestock may go directly to abattoirs for slaughter under a veterinary permit. They must first pass a clinical examination and test negative for FMD.
• Registered abattoirs may slaughter animals that have been isolated for 30 days and tested negative.

What is still restricted?
Farm and homestead slaughter for sale remains prohibited until further notice. Slaughter for own home consumption is allowed, but the meat may not leave the premises. The notice does not announce any relaxation for livestock auctions or international exports.

What to watch for!
Producers should report sores or blisters around the mouth and hooves, excessive salivation, reluctance to move and loss of body condition. Surveillance continues, and further changes depend on how the FMD situation develops.

Source: Directorate of Veterinary Services, Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Land Reform, Veterinary Public Notification No. 16 of 2026.

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