The Minister of Agriculture confirmed, during a joint ARP-CRD plenary, a significant drop in the cattle herd. Drought, fodder costs and structural pressures are weakening the entire sector, pushing the State to activate new measures to stabilize the sector.
A worrying diagnosis revealed in Parliament
In front of deputies and regional representatives, Ezzedine Ben Cheikh, Minister of Agriculture, Water Resources and Fisheries, sounded the alarm: Tunisia has lost nearly 20% of its cattle herd. A severe contraction, attributed to successive seasons of drought, water shortages and the global surge in fodder prices.
Faced with this decline, the minister assured that the department has initiated a series of measures intended to rebalance the sector and support small breeders, described as “the most fragile link” in a chain subject to strong tensions.
Measures to save a sector under pressure
To respond to the crisis, several structuring decisions are being put forward:
- Creation of a National Fodder Office to better control water resources intended for livestock.
- Fixing the prices of imported fodder raw materials, via the Ministry of Commerce, in order to reduce costs borne by breeders.
- Strengthening animal health and improving livestock protection systems.
- No disruption in the distribution of subsidized barley, Ben Cheikh insisted, denying any disruption in this sensitive segment.
The minister also recalled that the climate crisis has been coupled with economic pressure, transforming access to animal feed into a burden for many breeders.
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