Senwes Scenario December 2018 / January 2019 | Page 18

AGRICULTURAL
Niche market
Rabbit farming
“An ongoing process”
An industry which many are yet to discover, the rabbit meat industry, is slowly making
its mark in the South African market. The nutritious protein is, however, enjoyed by many
across the world!
 By Mbali Skosana
Senwes Graduate
S
enwes Scenario visited a rabbit
farmer in the Ventersdorp district.
Abraham Maree saw an opportu-
nity to start farming with rabbits
about two to three years ago when their
family farming business needed an extra
income. “Rabbit farming is an ongoing pro-
cess, they multiply at a fast rate, thus you
are able to slaughter every 3-4 weeks,”
Maree said.
After completing a training course
with the Coniglio (Italian for rabbit) Rabbit
Farmer Group, Maree started farming with
the New Zealand White breed. They had
extra buildings on the farm which now
house the animals. Coniglio supplied them
with the first breeding pairs and the cages;
now they also slaughter and sell to the
Coniglio branch in Randfontein.
Rabbits need to be watched constantly
and Abraham has two people employed to
help him with his rabbitry. Their cages need
to be cleaned on a daily basis and disin-
fected once a month. The shy animals have
sensitive stomachs and their feed has to be
right to avoid possible diarrhoea. Abraham
mentions that he feeds them pellets and
hay. Their slaughter age is 8 -  10 weeks and
their live weight needs to be at least 2,2 kg.
Currently, they are sold at R53 per kilogram.
With any business there will be highs and
lows and Abrahams describes the highs as
“the animals being calm”, which makes it
easier to work with and the lows that they
need to be watched constantly, which
makes it difficult for a farmer who farms
with other livestock.
Another challenge is that there aren’t
any veterinarians in the country who know
a lot about rabbit diseases, so farmers
have to learn from each other. Abraham
mentioned that there is a rabbit farmer
Whatsapp group where farmers share their
experiences and give tips to other farmers.
Rabbit meat is very high in protein, has
very little fat and is ideal for people with
digestive problems, cholesterol and diabe-
tes sufferers. It is also a high protein source
for fitness fanatics and body builders.
Abraham’s tip for people interested in
rabbit farming: “Do the necessary research
first, start with at least 100 breeding rabbits
and be patient.”
 Besides farming
with rabbits,
Abraham also
farms with
sheep.
 A rabbit mother
(doe) can give
birth to an ave­
rage of 6-8 kits
at a time.
16
SENWES SCENARIO | TECHNOLOGY & INNOVATION 2018