A history of SA Merino farming
The first person to successfully commercialise Merino farming in South Africa was Michiel van Breda. He started farming Merino in 1817 on the historical Zoetendals Vallei farm in the Overberg...
Top genetics boost communal goat project
Goat farming is central to the economy of the Bakgatla Ba Kgafela Traditional Authority (BBKTA) in North West. A project to improve the local goat herds through world-class genetics is...
Awassi rams for Free State milk sheep flock
For Elmarie van Aswegen, returning to the family farm, Patria, near Smithfield in the Free State in early 1997 went hand in hand with producing sheep’s milk cheese and breeding...
Meet the Quattro Boer Goat Group
By integrating their clients as partners in the marketing chain, these breeders face the problems in the industry head on.
World-class Boer Goats from the North West
The Schoonheid Boer Goat flock began as a sideline on the Kriek family’s farm near Amalia in North West. Since then, strict selection and the introduction of top genetics have...
Pedi sheep in the Piketberg
Hannes Eksteen and his son Lochner run the largest Pedi sheep flock in the Western Cape and find that this productive, problem-free breed gives excellent returns. Jay Ferreira reports.
Quality Merinos from the mountains of Barkly East
The Bergplaas Merino stud in the highlands of the north Eastern Cape was established in 1936 by Frikkie Nel and is today managed by his grandson, Stefan. Mike Burgess visited...
Farming with Indigenous Veld Goats
When Ross Rayner started farming near Adelaide six years ago, he purchased several hardy Xhosa Lob-eared goats, an Indigenous Veld Goat ecotype. Producing quality kapaters off the veld has defined...
Dormer sheep breed: Origin and history
The Dormer, one of the most popular mutton sheep breeds in SA today, has an interesting history.
Adding Dormers to a Merino operation
Well-known Merino stud breeder Eddie Prinsloo has diversified into Dormer sheep and is getting excellent results with this dual-purpose breed.
Communal goat farmer planning to go commercial
Most of South Africa’s livestock reportedly occur in communal areas, but few generate income.
A lifetime passion for Merinos
This year, Hilson Shuman produced his 60th wool clip. He is as passionate about his Merinos as he was in 1952 when the death of his father, Ken, put him...
Putting goat milk cheese on the map, one award at a time
A health setback for Alastair Catto, and Marianne Joos’s longing for goat milk cheese produced in Switzerland, brought this duo together in a partnership that would see them raking up...
Turning things around with Savannah goats
As many extensive farmers in the Karoo know, raising lambs successfully can be an enormous challenge. Farmer Flippie Loock from the Middelburg district knew he had to find an alternative,...
Supporting a family, week by lonely week
Malekaleke Maila farms with Pedi sheep on communal land in Limpopo. Unable to run his flock near his village, he is forced to spend each week away from home. Yet,...
The rise of Swakara farming
The South African Karakul industry was all but decimated in the 1980s and 1990s. Jaco Visser visited Karakul stud breeder Johan Moller in the Kalahari to find out about the...
The legacy of the Wellwood Merino stud
Near Graaff-Reinet, on the farm Wellwood, one of the oldest and most respected Merino studs in the country, five generations of Rubidge sons have consistently bred outstanding Merino sheep. Heather...
Making it in the mohair business
an Lottering and Andries Mopiley’s Angora goat farming enterprise in Prince Albert shows that an agricultural empowerment project can succeed driven by motivated beneficiaries and mentored by the industry’s experts....
Damara sheep: Adaptable and profitable
The Damara breed originated in Asia and spread to Southern Africa 2 000 years ago. Down the centuries, the extreme environment continually selected the hardiest, most adaptable specimens. Stud breeder...
Matriculant farms successfully with Boer goats
An early passion for farming can lead to a successful, profitable business for a teenager.
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