A total of 927 slaughter rights for Savanna Beef Operations traded on the Namibia Securities Exchange’s over-the-counter platform on Monday, the first day of trading for the first quarter, at N$300 per right.
According to Savanna board chairperson Siegfried Schneider, this marks another milestone for the beef processing company, with broking firm Cirrus Capital also reporting receiving a number of orders or instructions on the second, third, and fourth quarter of 2026.
Cirrus assisted in structuring and issuing the slaughter rights, which grant shareholders priority access to slaughter capacity at the facility.
This system is considered a landmark development in the Namibian beef industry, combining agricultural production with capital market mechanism.
“This development strengthens Namibia’s beef value chain, empowers local producers, and marks another step forward in innovative capital market solutions,” Schneider said.
He also expressed delight that the slaughter right trading system seems to be working effectively.
“Only 2 500 slaughter rights will be traded as a test phase until the end of May 2026. This is part of the ramp-up phase in anticipation of European Union export certification,” he said.
Schneider said an additional 86 people are in the process of being employed at the export abattoir until the end of March, bringing the total then to about 200 staff members.
“This is another ramp-up process with associated training of personnel,” he said.
Schneider said anyone can buy slaughter rights on the market, and those who do not have slaughter rights can purchase shares instead.
Savanna introduced the slaughter rights system to allocate slots to producers while awaiting full European Union (EU) export accreditation to access markets in southern Africa, the United Kingdom and the EU.
“With full export accreditation nearing, the company is ready to issue slaughter rights to producer shareholders for the remaining three quarters of the 2026 financial year, effective from 1 June to 28 February 2027,” he said.
Schneider said the digital slaughter rights system, together with an online booking platform, will ensure trading, booking, and slaughter processes are fair and transparent, helping to unlock value and create market-driven access to abattoir capacity for producers and investors.
This initiative aims to provide guaranteed, market-based access to abattoir capacity for producers while unlocking value through the NSX.
For the second, third and fourth quarters of the 2026 financial year (effective 1 June 2026 to 28 February 2027), rights are allocated to producer shareholders at a ratio of 5 333 shares for every single slaughter right, while a stricter ratio of 4 000:1 is set to take effect from the start of the next financial year in March 2027.
According to Schneider, the facility began operations at 10% to 20% capacity in early 2026, with total throughput initially limited while staff were trained, but the formal, large-scale slaughter rights system will be activated once EU export status is secured, now targeted for 1 June.
– email: matthew@namibian.com.na
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