The Mukota: Saving the breed from extinction

The Mukota is an indigenous, domestic pig found primarily in Zimbabwe with smaller populations found in Mozambique and Zambia.

- Ian Nkala

No official national survey has been conducted in Zimbabwe to determine its population size, but academics estimate that there are around 70 000 pigs, the bulk of which are owned by communal farmers, each keeping a small number for household consumption.

The breed is disease- and parasite tolerant, performs well on open veld and can thus be produced at minimal cost. It has served as a lean meat option in Zimbabwe for centuries but has never been produced commercially. Its population has been declining rapidly in recent years, sparking fears that it might be on the road to extinction.

Plans to expand breed numbers

Chris Grant, a Zimbabwean farmer who owns the Mzilikazi Kalahari Red Stud, is pioneering a drive to arrest the iconic pig’s decline. He started breeding the Mukota commercially in February 2016 – an effort he hopes will encourage other farmers to follow suit.

He and a partner started off with twelve animals, which grew into a 300-strong herd in only three years. They later dissolved the partnership, dividing the pigs equally among themselves.

Grant keeps his Mukotas on a 40ha farm in Nyamandhlovu in the province of Matabeleland North, roughly 40km northwest of Bulawayo. “The Mukota is a good breed. It can take care of itself and we only provide a small portion of supplements. It is also very strong and has exceptional disease and parasite tolerance. I have not given a single antibiotic in four years,” says Grant.

He sells some of the animals to butchers and others to people wanting to start breeding their own pigs.

A very hardy breed