ANIMAL TRACTION
Donkeys are a common sight throught Egypt, this one pulling a cart on
the streets of Cairo. They are often the family’s only means of transport.
From page 30
per hour under such condi-
machines and grain mills.
The benefits of using cattle,
donkeys, mules or horses in
this way are economic and
environmental.
Draught animals are more cost
effective to run than tractors,
particularly for those who only
use their tractors for a limited
number of hours a year (ie,
the typical Gauteng smallholder). For one shouldn't
think in terms of the area of
land that a smallholder works
with his tractor, but rather the
number of useful hours work
that it does per year.
Costs per hour for tractors of
various sizes have been
determined by researchers
based on 1 000 hours of
useful work per annum.
These figures are often used to
determine the rates to charge
for small scale farmers who do
perhaps 250 hours of useful
work with their tractor per
annum and where the cost
tions might be as much as
three to four times that of the
tractor doing 1 000 hours per
annum.
Buying a tractor is costly, even
for a second-hand machine.
And, particularly for older
second-hand machines, the
cost of down-time awaiting
spares (and the scarcity of
some spares) is a factor to be
born in mind (and you can
bet your bottom dollar that, if
your tractor is going to break
down, it will happen just at a
time of year when it is
crucially needed).
Some smallholders hire a
tractor, but then they are not
always able to do so when
they actually need it.
Using an animal for ploughing, etc, means less impact on
the soil. Tractors wheels cause
compaction of the soil.
Animals, by contrast, cause
less compaction and actually
Continued on page 33
A pony being used for grain threshing
Continued on page 33
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