Curtains close on Mariental abattoir
Farmers Meat Mariental abattoir will permanently close after recording an estimated N$26 million loss in the financial year ending June 2026. The announcement comes after its Hartlief Shop & Bistro in Windhoek’s Northern Industrial Area permanently closed on 15 July. Ohlthaver & List Group (OL) executive chairman and Hartlief managing director Sven Thieme says the […] The post Curtains close on Mariental abattoir appeared first on The Namibian .
Farmers Meat Mariental abattoir will permanently close after recording an estimated N$26 million loss in the financial year ending June 2026.
The announcement comes after its Hartlief Shop & Bistro in Windhoek’s Northern Industrial Area permanently closed on 15 July.
Ohlthaver & List Group (OL) executive chairman and Hartlief managing director Sven Thieme says the company had tried to make the abattoir financially sustainable.
Thieme says the abattoir has suffered financial losses every year since it resumed operations in 2022.
OL blamed rising livestock procurement costs, unfavourable exchange rates, limited access to premium export markets and international prices that do not cover production costs.
“We deeply regret having to close Farmers Meat. Since we reopened the business in 2022, the goal was to build a viable export business supporting Namibian sheep producers and creating lasting jobs. Unfavourable exchange rates, high procurement costs, limited access to premium markets and international prices that fail to cover production costs made continued operations unsustainable,” Thieme said on Monday.
The closure will affect 102 workers, including 19 permanent and 83 temporary employees.
Thieme said the impact on workers is the company’s immediate concern.
“The greatest sadness in decisions like these is always the profound personal impact on our people. It is truly heartbreaking that, despite our people’s commitment and hard work since re-opening in 2022, the harsh realities of the numerous external factors make it impossible to continue, as there is simply no clear path to profitability,” he said.
Hartlief says it is looking at opportunities to move eligible employees to other positions within the company and the wider OL Group. The abattoir will complete its final wind down activities on 30 September.
Management will then consider other possible uses for the Mariental facility and its equipment.
Farmers Meat Mariental became part of Hartlief following a merger in 2005. It later became part of the OL Group after the group acquired a majority stake in Hartlief in November 2019.
The abattoir, about 250km south of Windhoek, was used to process Namibian lamb for local value addition and export markets.
Commercial operations at the facility were suspended in August 2020 following years of drought in southern Namibia.
The drought resulted in farmers reducing their livestock numbers, leaving the abattoir without enough slaughter-ready sheep to operate at capacity.
OL and Hartlief later invested N$3 million to upgrade the facility to meet international export standards and provided N$40 million in working capital.
The abattoir resumed commercial operations in November 2022 and officially reopened on 3 August 2023.
The abattoir recorded an operating loss of N$17.5 million during the 2024 financial year.
OL’s annual report of 2024 shows the abattoir struggled after exports to Norway were stopped during the financial year.
