18 Aug 2026

Gaborone High Court will today hear an urgent application filedby feedlotters JS Beef (Pty) Ltdand Primefast (Pty ) Ltd, who are seeking to set aside administrative decisions imposing Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) control measures and animal movement prohibitions.

The country’s two largest feedlotters claim that the current controls were crippling their operations and causing catastrophic losses through no fault of their own, despite efforts to mitigate the impact. Seeking interim relief recently, pending a review applicati on and the expiry of the statutory notice period, the applicants argue that the case centered on the lawfulness of actions taken by the Director of Veterinary Services, Dr Kobedi Segale, following the FMD outbreak in January this year.

In their filings, feedlotters cite the Minister of Lands and Agriculture, Dr Edwin Dikoloti and Dr Segale as the first andsecond respondents respectively.The companies claim that they made several att empts to engage and consult both officials, butwere ignored.

“They irrationally and indeed unreasonably, failed to engage and consult with the applicants,” the papers state.

The feedlotters stressed that they were not challenging the state’s authority to contr ol animal disease, noting that their objection was to the way the orders were issued without consultation or fair process.

Instead, they proposed scientifically supported and less restrictive alternatives that could protect both animal health and the beef industry from devastating consequences. Fending off the lawsuit before Justice Onkemetse Tshosa, government maintained that the FMD control measures and movement prohibitions were lawful and taken in the public interest. In an answering affidavit, government stated that Section 52 of the Constitution gave the minister executi ve authority to act for the public good.

Dismissing claims of economic harm as speculative, government argued that the overall impact of FMD was far greater than what the feedlotters stated, adding that the applicants were not entitled to interim relief. “Claims of irreparable harm and damage to Botswana beef industry are speculative and not supported by evidence,” reads the affidavit. ENDS