Merino sheep are by far the largest sheep breed in South Africa, with approximately 2500 merino farmers and more than 13 million merino sheep in South Africa.
Merino SA is funded by the membership fees of its members. Membership of Merino SA is voluntary.
The benefits of membership of Merino SA include cooperation with and access to the Merino genetic improvement plan. This sets the standard and benchmark for breeders to improve their breeding stock. Striving towards improving the breed increases the quality of the offspring of the prize rams and ewes and therefore the breed.
The annual South African Classic show is an opportunity for breeders to show their best specimens and this contributes to the continuous improvement of the breed.
Merino SA members also have access to the accredited merino advisors who are available in all nine production regions in South Africa. The Merino SA website publishes the Focus journals, which contain useful articles about Merino production.
Merino SA also publishes information about the auctions at various studs in South Africa. Merino SA is affiliated with the World Federation of Merino Breeders, which provides the South African merino industry with access to international trends in technology and information.
Sheep farming is done all over South Africa, but is traditionally concentrated in the more arid regions of the country. Although the income ...