Farmers told to trim herds as El Niño threatens severe drought

LOCAL authorities and agricultural experts are urging farmers to reduce their livestock numbers to prevent overgrazing as El Niño threatens below-normal rainfall this season.

The Rehoboth Town Council has instructed farmers using Townlands No 302 to reduce their livestock to a maximum of 35 large stock units and 80 small stock units per tenant.

The council says the measure is aimed at protecting grazing and water resources during the 2026/27 rainy season.

“All tenants are requested to adhere to this directive and make the necessary arrangements accordingly,” the council says in a recent notice.

Rehoboth acting strategic executive for local economic development and community development Desire Pieters says keeping too many animals could lead to overgrazing, livestock losses and competition for limited grazing and water.

“Farmers are urged not to wait until drought conditions become critical before taking action,” she says.

This comes after the Namibia Meteorological Service last week warned that El Niño conditions are expected to strengthen from October.

El Niño is a natural climate pattern caused by unusually warm waters in the Pacific Ocean, which can affect rainfall and temperatures.

Cirrus Capital reported earlier this month that about 156 000 cattle were marketed between January and July this year, up from about 122 000 during the same period last year.

Marketing volumes were higher than last year in almost every month, with March recording an increase of about 90% and July about 50%.

More than 30 000 cattle were marketed in July alone.

PANIC-SELLING FEARS

Farmer Thomas Horn says uncertainty over the coming rainy season was already visible among buyers at this year’s G8 Bonsmara auction.

“People are very nervous about what is coming up, the weather. Are we going to have a dry year next year? And you could see that very clearly,” Horn says.

Another farmer, Marc Schumacher, says the possibility of El Niño could also affect farmers’ willingness to spend money on bulls and genetics.

He says breeders still have to bring animals to market regardless of weather conditions, but buyers determine how much they are prepared to pay, adding that farmers who expect difficult conditions may be reluctant to invest in new bulls.

“El Niño definitely is in the back of their minds and it does affect the way the auctions are going to go for the near future,” Schumacher says.

Meanwhile, Stampriet farmer Joggie Briedenhann says farmers who need to reduce their herds should first sell animals that are less productive.

“If you reduce your number of stock, which we must all do, reduce the lower quality, the quality you don’t want, the quality that doesn’t bring in money,” he says.

Briedenhann says farmers could use money from those sales to invest in better genetics.

Omaruru Farmers’ Association vice chairman Markus Trede says farmers should plan their livestock numbers around the possibility of drought.

“It’s something everyone is used to. It’s not the first one. We regularly have droughts,” he told The Namibian yesterday.

Trede said good rainfall over the past two years allowed grazing conditions to improve after earlier dry periods.

Farmers should, however, avoid keeping more animals than their land can support when rainfall fails, he warned.

“I always keep the herd at a number I know I can survive on for about a year, more or less, without rain,” he said.

NAU FLAGS UNCERTAINTY

Meanwhile, Namibia Agricultural Union (NAU) commodities analyst Leigh-Ann Nehoya says farmers should not rush to sell their animals, because grazing conditions differ from one part of the country to another.

She says farmers have been rebuilding their herds after livestock numbers fell during previous dry periods, while recent rainfall has left some farms with enough grazing.

“I think right now it really is a situational issue. Depending on where you are based and whether the necessary grazing is available, we can’t say farmers should de-stock when even the drought is still potential,” Nehoya says.

She says a general call for farmers to sell livestock could trigger unnecessary marketing before the rainfall outlook becomes clearer.

“I think the last thing we want to do is encourage some sort of panic marketing before things are set or things are clear in terms of the way forward,” she said.

She added that farmers who still have enough grazing can prepare feed and monitor conditions before deciding whether to sell animals.

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