ETHEKWINI NEWSFLASH
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
14 JULY 2022

Efforts by eThekwini Municipality to fight youth unemployment have received another boost after Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda today, 14 July, launched a R3.5 million Intensive Sheep Feedlot facility at the Cato Ridge Agri-Park in Hammarsdale, outer west of Durban.

Facilitated by the City’s Business Support, Tourism, Markets and Agri-Business Unit, the facility features two intensive sheep feedlot facilities that accommodate 1000 lambs per feedlot. It also has feeding and storage space as well as a weighing area.

In his address at the launch attended by major producers, suppliers and financial institutions Mayor Kaunda said the establishment of the sheep breeding facility comes after the eThekwini Metro was identified as a major lamb and mutton market in the country. “However, production in the entire KZN remains below five percent of the total national production, which means we are consumers and not producers. Therefore, this is our response to this demand,” he said.

The newly established facility has already created 20 long-term jobs for former Rainbow Chicken workers, who were retrenched after the firm closed its production facilities. They are part of two AgriSMMEs who started operating in April. They were selected through their capacity to produce about 12 000 sheep per annum following an open advertisement upon the project construction completion in February.

One of the beneficiaries, Sifiso Myeni, Chief Executive Officer of AgriHouse Group trading under their subsidiary KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Lamb, employs seven former Rainbow Chicken staff including a farm manager. “We provided necessary sheep farming training for them and work commenced with our trial run of breeding 62 sheep which was successful and the sheep were bought by Pick ‘n Pay with a long-term follow-up order of delivering 2000 sheep on a monthly basis to the biggest retail outlet.”

Myeni thanked eThekwini for opening such suitable sheep farming space, adding that sheep farming and its value chain had potential to create employment.

Mayor Kaunda further stated that the poultry faming business that the City opened in December 2020, is progressing well and has made a turnover of about R5 million since inception through the six businesses that are fully operational in separate poultry units at Cato Ridge. About 100 long-term jobs and income opportunities have been created for locals.

“Such success encouraged us to expand to sheep farming as it is among the five commodities adopted in the eThekwini Agribusiness Masterplan. The other four are poultry, cannabis, vegetables and piggery.”

Mayor Kaunda added that the municipality is looking for partners to invest about R40 million to assist with the rapid growth of sheep production within the municipality.

“We would like to see a rapid growth to a herd of about 600 000 sheep per annum and lambs in the western areas of the city. This will make it the biggest feedlot production in the province.”

He said another short-term plan in the pipeline is the reopening or building of new abattoirs.

ENDS.

Issued by eThekwini Municipality. For more information, contact Mayoral Spokesperson Mluleki Mntungwa on 060 974 1140 or Municipal Spokesperson Msawakhe Mayisela on 060 966 4220.