Livestock is the largest agricultural sector in South Africa, with a population of about 13.8 million. Heads of cattle and 28.8 million. Sheep. Breeders breeders focus on the development of breeds, well adapted to different climatic and environmental conditions.
Dairy cattle:
Dairy products are produced through South Africa, with most farms located in the eastern and northern Free States, in the north-west, in the central areas of KwaZulu-Natal, in the Eastern and Western Cape, Gauteng and the southern parts of Mpumalanga. The four main dairy breeds in South Africa are Holstein, Jersey, Guernsey and Ayrshire.
The dairy industry is important for the labor market in South Africa, about 4,300 milk producers employ about 60,000 agricultural workers and indirectly provide jobs for up to 40,000 people. Milk production for 2003/04 was estimated at 2 billion liters.
Beef:
South Africa produces 85% of its meat needs, 15% is imported from Namibia, Botswana, Swaziland, Australia, New Zealand and the EU. Local demand, as a rule, is ahead of production, despite the fact that there are unused stocks in community farming areas.
Cattle ranches are mainly located in the Eastern Cape Province, parts of the Free State and KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo and the Northern Cape Peninsula. Popular beef breeds include the native Afrikaner and Nguni, as well as the local Bonsmara and Drakensberger. European and American breeds, such as Charolais, Hereford, Angus, Simmentaler, Sussex, Brahman and Santa Gertrudis, are maintained as pure breeds or used in crossing.
Sheep and goat breeding:
South African sheep breeding is concentrated in the Northern and Eastern Cape Province, Western Cape, the Free State and Mpumalanga, and Ermelo in Mpumalanga is one of the largest areas of wool production. Fifty percent of sheep are small wool merino. Other breeds include locally developed Afriri, mutton wool, adapted to arid conditions, South African lamb Merino, Dohna and Merino Landrace. South African lamb is produced from Dorper - a highly productive and locally developed mutton breed for arid regions - and wool Merino.
Karakul sheep are farmed in more arid areas, with about 20,173 skins with a gross value of 3 million Rupees produced in 2002/03. The local meat-cow goat accounts for about 30% of all commercial goats. Angora goat used to produce mohair.
Poultry and pig:
Southern poultry and pig farms are more intensive than intensive production of sheep and cattle, and are located near the urban areas of Gauteng, Durban, Pietermaritzburg, Cape Town and Port Elizabeth. The predominant breeds of pigs are the South African Landrace, Great White, Durok and Pietran.
The annual South African poultry farm is 960,000 tons. Broiler production amounts to about 82% of the total poultry meat production, and the rest is mature chicken (culling), small-scale and domestic poultry farming, ducks, geese, turkeys and other specialized white meat products. Income from the production of poultry and eggs in 2002/03 amounted to 11.3 billion rubles.
South Africa accounts for 67% of global sales of ostrich products - leather, meat and feathers. The gross value of ostrich feathers and products for 2002/03 was 276.5 million rubles.
Game industry:
South Africa has more games and more diverse types of games than most countries. Over the years, the game industry has grown, and today it is a viable industry with great economic potential. The main game zones of the country are in the province of Limpopo, in the north-west, in Mpumalanga, in the Free State, in the Eastern Cape, Karoo, Kalahari in the Northern Cape and in the thermal bush KwaZulu-Natal.
A descriptive game model has been developed to optimize intensive animal husbandry on game farms with the potential for increasing the global gaming industry products by 8% and 15%.
Aquaculture:
The aquaculture industry in South Africa continues to make significant progress in growing technology, marketing strategy, marketing practices and scientific innovations. The main types of aquaculture are mussels, trout, tilapia, catfish, oysters and aquatic flounders (cape). Median farming occurs mainly in the Gulf of Saldanha.
