23 April 2025 | Pretoria – The Red Meat Industry Services (RMIS) officially launched its “Field to Future” process—a practical research and development (R&D) framework designed to align South Africa’s red meat sector with its 2030 growth ambitions. Stakeholders from across the red meat value chain joined the webinar for an introduction to the new, industry-led innovation process designed to shape a resilient and globally competitive future for South Africa’s red meat sector.
As part of this initiative, RMIS is activating eight thematic Focus Area Groups from23–24 April 2025. These groups will drive the bottom-up identification of key industry challenges and solutions, acting as the first filter in the R&D funnel. Participants include producers, veterinarians, researchers, processors, and market experts—all uniting to define priorities across areas such as animal health, meat safety, inclusive growth, market access, and sustainability.
“Our goal is to shift from legacy silo approaches to a truly unified, responsive system,” said Dewald Olivier, CEO of RMIS. “This process enables stakeholders to co-create practical, high-impact projects with clear alignment to the Red Meat Industry Strategy 2030.”
Following the webinar, attendees were invited to share their perspectives on the Field to Future framework, express interest in joining specific Focus Area Groups, and nominate facilitators to guide each group through the next phases of the process.
The Field to Future structure is designed to evolve—from national meetings in 2025 to regional clusters by 2027—ensuring inclusive representation and agile, evidence-based project development. Ultimately, prioritised topics will feed into RMIS’s innovation unit and be packaged into funded projects for industry-wide benefit.
All stakeholders are encouraged to contribute to this industry-wide R&D initiative to ensure the framework’s success and advancing a resilient, competitive red meat industry.
Those who were unable to attend the webinar are invited to review the Field to Future materials and participate by submitting their feedback and indicating their preferred Focus Area Group(s) via the form provided.
For more information, visit www.rmis.co.za or contact Sara-Lea van Eeden at sara-lea@s-ellepr.com.
About Red Meat Industry Services (RMIS):
RMIS is a not-for-profit organisation established by the Red Meat and Livestock Primary Cluster, which includes the Red Meat Abattoir Association (RMAA), the South African Feedlot Association (SAFA), the Red Meat Producers (RPO), and the National Emerging Red Meat Producers (NERPO).
RMIS is mandated to deliver service-driven solutions across the red meat value chain in alignment with the Red Meat Industry Strategy 2030, with a focus on four strategic pillars: safeguarding animal and public health, expanding market access, fostering inclusive growth, and ensuring long-term industry competitiveness.
For more information or to access the strategy roadmap, visit: www.rmis.co.za
