One hundred and four small-scale livestock farmers in Loeriesfontein, in South Africa's Northern Cape, have received feed support as drought continues to cut grazing and push up feed costs, Food for Mzansi reports.
The drought has reduced water in rivers, dams and underground sources across the province. Crops fail, grazing for livestock shrinks, and many communities cannot get enough clean water for homes and businesses.
Working through two unions representing small-scale farmers and a local enterprise development initiative, farmers received support within three months: 50kg packs of maize, pellets, protein supplements with energy and minerals, and other help with livestock nutrition.
The organisations shared the feed according to each farmer's need, the number of animals and how much support each farm required, aiming for early and fair distribution.
Gwynne-Lee Borcherds, social programme manager at Khobab Wind, said Loeriesfontein is known for its livestock industry. "By helping farmers maintain healthy livestock during challenging periods, we are contributing to the sustainability of livelihoods that the broader community depends on," she said, adding that such help can support emerging farmers towards markets and larger herds.
"We are incredibly grateful for the feed," one farmer said. "With the drought conditions we are facing, we would have really struggled without this assistance. We simply cannot afford to buy feed ourselves."
Source: Food for Mzansi
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