Morocco Implements Health Measures for Eid Al-Adha Amid Pandemic

In a joint press release, the two ministries announced "preventive health measures to be respected by butchers on the day of the celebration, as well as organizational measures to be established in livestock markets".

Concretely, these measures concern "the temporary opening of additional souks" and the strengthened control of animal transport throughout the territory. The practice of the rite will also be carried out in compliance with health measures, under the supervision of the services of the two ministries, and in relation with the municipalities and the professional organizations concerned.

Regarding the livestock market, the identification operation of sheep and goats has allowed the ONSSA services to count and "mark" 7.2 million heads as of July 9. The objective is to reach 8.5 million heads as last year for a demand estimated by the Ministry of Agriculture at 5.4 million heads, including 5 million sheep and 460,000 goats.

For livestock-fatteners, this figure seems exaggerated, especially since the practice of the rite has considerably decreased in middle-income households. Moreover, this year, with the Covid-19 health crisis, households no longer have the necessary financial capacity to make these traditional purchases of sheep.

In short, demand should therefore decrease. But what about the price of the sheep? Many livestock-fatteners argue that the price of livestock could be expensive, given the drought that has impacted the cost of purchasing livestock feed.

According to a professional in the sector, all budgets should be able to afford a lamb between 1,500 and 3,000 DH, with a slight variation depending on the age, quality and breed.

For its part, the Ministry of Agriculture reassures about the health status of the livestock offered for sacrifice, specifying that all sheep and goats have been vaccinated against foot-and-mouth disease.