El Niño is here: how to prepare your herd for a hot, dry summer
A very strong El Niño is building, and a hotter, drier summer is likely over most of South Africa. What El Niño is, what 2015/16 taught us, and how to prepare now.
Foot-and-mouth is slowing: how to keep your herd healthy and your business going
The number of new FMD outbreaks reported in South Africa halved from August to September 2026. Where things stand here and next door, how to care for sick animals, keep the virus out and keep trading.
Stock theft: guard your herd, and have your say on the draft law
A draft Stock Theft Amendment Bill is open for public comment: send yours by Friday 30 October 2026. What it would change, how to have your say, and what you and your village can do today.
The missing half of the national herd, and what it means for prices
About 40% of South Africa's 12 million cattle live on communal land and small farms, and most never reach the formal market. Where they go, what they fetch, and what changes when they can.
Mafisa: the trust system Sotho-Tswana families traded by, rebuilt as an app
Long before escrow had a name, Sotho-Tswana families placed whole herds in other people's care on a set of rules everyone knew. What mafisa was, why it worked, and what it teaches a modern livestock market.
Movement paperwork after FMD: what serious buyers now demand
Foot-and-mouth disease reached all nine provinces by March 2026 and changed the rules for moving cattle, sheep and goats. The papers a buyer should ask for, and a seller should have ready, updated for the July 2026 control measures, in plain language with the gazette references.
Farmer's guides
Buy and sell livestock from your phone
Listing is free. Farmers keep 97%. The buyer pays a 7% service fee. The buyer's money waits with a licensed escrow provider, never with Live Stock, until the animals are inspected and accepted.
Open the market