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STANDING COMMITTEE ON ECONOMIC AFFAIRS Consolidated Review Report of the Fiji Meat Industry Board 2015- 2017 Annual Reports PARLIAMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF FIJI Parliamentary Paper No.

94 of 2022 Published and Printed by the Department of Legislature, Parliament House, SUVA.
August, 2022 Table of Contents Chairperson’s Foreword .....................................................................................................................3 1.0 Introduction ...........................................................................................................................4 1.1 Background ....................................................................................................................................... 4 2.0 Findings and Recommendations ..............................................................................................5 3.0 SDG Analysis ................................................................................................................................6 4.0 Conclusion ..............................................................................................................................7 Members Signature…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….8 2 | P a g e Chairperson’s Foreword The Standing Committee on Economic Affairs is pleased to submit to Parliament, the Consolidated Review Report of the Fiji Meat Industry Board 2015-2017 Annual Reports.
The Fiji Meat Industry Board works with the mission of providing slaughtering and processing services in facilities that are internationally benchmarked for safety, hygiene and quality As part of its deliberations, the Committee invited Executives from the FMIB to provide a submission for the period under review.

It was noted that the industry had been facing numerous challenges which included but are not limited to dwindling livestock numbers and high maintenance costs due to aged abattoir facilities.
The Committee made recommendations for FMIB to develop a multiyear Strategic Plan which systematically addresses these challenges and sets the organization in the right direction.

Furthermore, the Committee during its deliberations also noted the need to review the Meat Act 1970.

The Committee recommended for FMIB to consider the option of vertical integration which would entail exploring the viability of having its own supply farm as well as a retail butcher.
It would also enable FMIB to complement its supply of live animals and maintain the minimum throughput necessary.

I would like to take this opportunity to extend our appreciation to the representatives from the Fiji Meat Industry Board for making time to present before the Committee.

Finally, I would like to thank our Committee Members who were part of the team that produced this report: - Deputy Chairperson Hon.

Veena Bhatnagar, Hon.

Sachida Nand, Hon.

Inosi Kuridrani and Hon.

Ro Filipe Tuisawau.


I also take this opportunity to acknowledge and thank the Parliamentary Staff who have given us invaluable support.

On behalf of the Standing Committee on Economic Affairs, I commend the Review of the Fiji Meat Industry Board 2015-2017 Annual Reports to Parliament.

3 | P a g e 1.0 Introduction 1.1 Background The Fiji Meat Industry Board (FMIB), under the Meat Act Cap 237, protects and preserves the Meat Industry in Fiji.
It plays an important role in assuring that meat that is safe and fit for consumption by thousands of Fijian families.

The function of the Fiji Meat Industry Board is to: • Construct and operate public slaughtering facilities.

• Take steps deemed desirable for the protection, preservation and expansion of the meat industry in Fiji.

• Borrow funds as and when required to effectively discharge its function.

• Purchase, trade or deal in livestock, meat and its by-products.
Committee Remit and Composition The Committee is made up of five (5) Members of Parliament, three (3) of which are Government members and two Opposition members.

According to Section 109(2) (a) the Standing Committee is responsible to look into matters related to economic development, finance, banking and taxation.

4 | P a g e 2.0 Findings and Recommendations 1.

The Committee noted with concern that the challenges highlighted in the Report continued to be repeated in the years 2015, 2016 and 2017.
The Committee recommends for the FMIB to develop a multiyear Strategic Plan which systematically addresses these challenges and sets the organization in the right direction.

2.

The Committee also noted from the Report the need to review Meat Act 1970.

The Committee concurs with this and recommends this be done with urgency.

3.

In light of supply consistency, the Committee recommends for FMIB to consider the option of vertical integration.
This would entail exploring the viability of having its own supply farm as well as a retail butcher.

In addition, this would enable FMIB to complement its supply of live animals and maintain the minimum throughput necessary.

4.

The Committee recommends for FMIB to explore possible options in terms of mobile slaughterhouse.

The Committee believes this may increase the number of animals coming through FMIB and reduce the number of bush kills.
It may also have a positive impact on the farmers as they may be able to get a fair value of their animal.

5 | P a g e 3.0 SDG Analysis As part of the scrutiny of the report, the Committee looked into areas of Gender as permitted under the Standing Orders of Parliament, and importantly other aspects of the Sustainable Development Goals.

The following activities outline FMIB contributions towards the SDGs.
SDG 5 Gender Equality and Empowerment of Women and Girls The FMIB 2015 -2017 Annual Report, within the work force employment it had 51 male and 18 female, at the Board level there were 4 males and 2 females.

Goal 2.

End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture.

The FMIB reports that faces a shortage of decline in livestock numbers, which is beyond our control, has directly affected our income.

We are still unable to slaughter to full capacity due to this.
In collaboration with Ministry of Agriculture, the FMIB encourages for people to venture in livestock farming in the area of Poultry and Beef farming.

6 | P a g e 4.0 Conclusion To conclude, the Committee noted the various challenges faced by FMIB during the period under review and looks forward to receiving more recent Annual Reports to identify the various initiatives undertaken by FMIB to overcome these challenges.

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