ABSTRACT
The sheep and wool industry has always been one of the key industries in agriculture in South Africa. It is the livelihood of a large percentage of the rural population, and wool is the most important agricultural export product to earn foreign currency. Wool producers are encouraged to obtain the highest possible income from sheep and wool within the framework of optimum land utilization. Financial encouragement comes from both the government and the wool growers' own organization, the Wool Board. Apart from the Merino, South Africa's wooled sheep population consists of smaller numbers of different breeds and types. The South African Mutton Merino has increased and, while in relatively small numbers, Wool-mutton breed is found to be widely distributed, especially in the higher-rainfall regions. The South African Meat Board controls and promotes the production and marketing of meat, including lamb and mutton, in approximately the same way as the Wool Board does for wool.
