Hardiness & calving ease
Our cows brave droughts, parasites and disease with genetics doing the heavy lifting. Females are selected for easy calving, with an average birth weight of about 7% of the mother's weight, so no intervention is needed.
Our story
A farm, a breed and a turnaround.
The farm
Dankbaar, between Venterstad and the Gariep Dam
A harsh climate where the Great Karoo melts into the Suurberg mountains. Temperatures range from 49°C in summer to −16°C in winter, and rainfall of about 450 mm a year is unpredictable.
This harsh environment has allowed years of natural selection to refine the herd, so that only the cows who keep producing good calves every year, without exception, remain.
The breed
3 000 years of African adaptation
In the early 1940s, agriculturalist Len Harvey identified a distinctive type of yellow Sanga cattle in what is now south-west Zimbabwe. Rather than risk their adaptability by crossbreeding, he selected strictly for fertility, efficient beef production, temperament and uniformity, under heat, poor grazing and long walking distances.
The Tuli was officially recognised in 1955. Today it is known for calving ease, maternal instinct, good carcass quality and efficient use of available forage: a breed to reckon with in a low-input system.
The breeder
Dr Jomari Rothmann062 701 3399
Christo Rothmann082 572 9506
Christo Rothmann
A chartered accountant, turnaround specialist for JSE-listed companies and founder of his own group of companies. When he bought his father's farm, the vision was the same as any turnaround: make it profitable. Dorpers were hindered by predators and stock theft, and in 2004 the Tuli journey began.
After trialling several breeds, only one met his profitability goals on Karoo veld without supplementation. The aim: more kilograms of beef per kilogram of cow maintained each year, unassisted calving and high conception without intensive feeding.
Dr Jomari Rothmann062 701 3399Christo Rothmann082 572 9506