Adding further value to South African indigenous goats through the production of cashmere

Abstract

South Africa has over 6 million indigenous goats, many of which have two coats of fibre, namely a fine down (cashmere) that is finer than 18,5 micron and a coarse guard hair. These goats are primarily kept for their meat, milk, skin products and other traditional purposes as well as for controlling bush encroachment. A programme was launched three years ago aimed at establishing the fine down fibre production and associated value addition potential of these indigenous goats. Against this background, the paper discusses CSIR’s Division of Textile Technology (Textek) involvement in the utilization and promotion of fine down (cashmere) fibre production from indigenous goats in a joint project with Grootfontein and Döhne Agriculture Development Institutions. This paper reports on a study undertaken to determine the ability of South African indigenous goats to produce cashmere like fibre and records the results obtained on some 4 000 fleece samples tested during the past three years. Reference is made to the fibre quality, yield and profile of the down component of the samples compared to those of Chinese cashmere. This paper also discusses the reasons why cashmere production is ideally suited for subsistence farmers and the importance for South Africa to utilise and improve the fine fibre production potential of indigenous goats and the future possibilities of establishing a viable cashmere industry in South Africa.