Pigs

Piggery owner Zodwa Thwala, winner of the 2017 Gauteng Department of Agriculture and Rural Development’s Best Female Entrepreneur Award, says that her love for teaching motivated her to add farmer training to her existing piggery business.

South Africa’s indigenous Kolbroek breed is ideal for contributing to food security in rural areas, according to Wessel Pistorius, a Kolbroek breeder near Magaliesburg. The modern animal, bred from a wide variety of breeds, offers many advantages: it requires little space, is an indiscriminate eater, has excellent maternal traits, and is generally healthy.

With her tiny 10-sow piggery, Western Cape pig producer Augusta Thomas lacks economy of scale. But despite this, she is making a reasonable living. She spoke to Glenneis Kriel about her business strategies and how they enable her to overcome size contraints.

With 9 600 sows, Chalala Farms near Malmesbury in the Swartland will soon produce more than 275 000 piglets per year. Jeff van Zyl, manager of the piggery, spoke to Glenneis Kriel about the operation’s production methods.

With the welfare of farm animals under close scrutiny in Europe, farmers there are increasingly utilising technologies and systems that balance animals’ well-being with profitability. Lloyd Phillips recently toured a modern sow unit near Magdeburg in Germany to witness this approach first-hand.

Novice pig farmers should start with highly marketable and popular breeds such as the Landrace or Large White, says Shane Brody.

Today’s domesticated pig has most of the qualities that the modern farmer looks for in livestock, including high profitability, explains Shane Brody.

The enclosed sleeping area for pigs should take up about a third of total pen size.

Alternative feed options can help to buffer the impact of rising costs, especially when prices increase due to adverse climatic conditions. Mauro Delle Donne of Zandam Farm explained to Glenneis Kriel how he lowers production costs by using software technology and whey from his cheese factory.

There are several key factors to consider before deciding to farm pigs, whether intensively or free range, says Shane Brody.

This is the first question you have to ask yourself when considering raising pigs, says Shane Brody.

Dr Elsje Pieterse of the Department of Animal Sciences at Stellenbosch University offers some advice on good feeding practices.