About 70-75 percent of Botswana beef exports are consumed in the European Union
(EU) beef market. In 1997, the EU introduced a directive which made it mandatory for
beef exported to the EU to be identifiable and traceable from farm to fork through a
computerized system. Botswana then introduced the livestock identification and traceback
system (LITS) in 1999 to fulfill the EU export requirements and maintain the much
needed EU market access. We believe the EU-imposed LITS may pose as a non-tariff
barrier to Botswana beef trade with the EU. We use a two-period causal comparative
approach to examine the effects of the EU-imposed LITS on Botswana’s beef exports,
revenue and poverty. The EU-imported de-boned meat requirement of individual
identification of cattle and traceability of beef products has imposed an extra financial
burden on government almost the size of the current budget for social safety net
programmes in Botswana. Both fresh or chilled boneless beef and frozen beef exports to
the EU and the real value of total boneless bovine meat exports have declined
significantly over the study period. The incidence of poverty in the rural areas was more
than double that experienced in urban areas. However, the majority of cattle were owned
by poorer rural households.