Chris Hani breeder hits jackpot with first bull
The first black Brangus breeder in the Chris Hani district, Nkosemntu Nika, sold a bull for R50,000 at the Tarkastad livestock auction on Friday.
Bulls were selling for as little as R36,000 to the most expensive Brangus on the day at R200,000.
Nika started farming in 2012 after taking early retirement at 55 as a finance director at Petro SA. He is the son of a farm labourer and qualified as a chartered accountant from the University of Fort Hare.
The bidding for Meat Wagon, his bull, started at R40,000 before it was sold to a Western Cape farmer for R50,000.
A cross between an Angus and a Brahman, the Brangus is a breed growing in popularity.
Said Nika: “I am quite happy with the price. Cattle breeding goes with a name, and I still need to establish my brand.
“I need to keep bringing quality bulls so that bidders know I breed quality bulls.”
Nika said he had received a lot of support from the department of rural development & land reform (DRDLR), both morally and financially.
Nika is mentored by a local farmer, Ashley King, who is a member of the family on whose farm he lived as a youngster and who financed his education.
He said King insisted that he invest in bulls and he obliged.
“While this is a starting point, it is still the result of the hard work that has been put in.
“It’s been hard getting here as I spent the little savings I had on stock, infrastructure development and equipment.
“The farm was run down when I got it from the department but they helped me bring it up to standard,” the father of three said.
Future plans include establishing his ZK Brangus brand on his mountainous 1,982ha farm.
Among the challenges facing The number of bulls for sale at the Tarkastad livestock auction the up-and-coming farmer is a shortage of land for his bulls.
“Farming needs passion and patience because you won’t see profits overnight. It is a longterm investment and it is not something you can do on weekends unless you have a professional manager and systems in place,” he said.
There were 38 bulls on sale and 60 bidders at the auction at the Tarkastad sportsgrounds.
DRDLR deputy director in the Chris Hani district, Malerato Molokoane, said they were excited to see the support they had given Nika paying off.
“This is a sign that land reform can work with support to farmers. Working with the department of agriculture, we will continue to identify and support farmers,” Molokoane said.
Nika said it was important to use professional farming techniques, and he attended farming courses regularly to keep abreast of new farming technologies and techniques.
He is hoping the Brangus Society, which decides how many bulls each farmer can auction, will allow him to auction more bulls next year.