Nguni Cattle Show Resilience To South Africa’s Foot And Mouth Crisis
On a research farm outside Perth, Western Australia, a group of speckled, small-framed calves move quietly among much larger Angus and Shorthorn herdmates. They are Nguni crosses, carrying the genes of a centuries‑old African breed that has suddenly found itself in the spotlight for something far more serious than pretty hides – an apparent resilience to one of livestock’s most feared diseases.
As South Africa battles one of the most significant Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) outbreaks in its history, producers on the ground are noticing a pattern: Nguni cattle are being less affected than European‑origin breeds. While scientists are careful to stress that this resilience does not equal immunity, the observations are fuelling renewed global interest in indigenous African genetics – and raising important questions for countries like Zimbabwe that remain FMD‑vulnerable.
Indigenous Breed In The Firing Line – And Holding Its Ground
According to a recent report in South Africa’s Farmers Weekly, commercial farmers are reporting that Nguni cattle have fared noticeably better than imported Bos taurus types during the current FMD crisis.
Nguni Cattle Breeders’ Society president, Dr Oswald Jannasch, told the magazine that producers had not reported mortalities among Nguni cattle in the latest outbreak.
“The animals that did suffer from the disease were far less affected than other breeds and recuperated quite rapidly after the disease had run its course,” Dr Jannasch said.
That pattern, he added, has triggered a marked increase in demand for Nguni cattle over the past six months, as South African producers look for genetics that can withstand disease shocks and harsh grazing conditions.
Nguni cattle evolved in southern Africa over thousands of years, in environments where livestock co‑existed with wildlife reservoirs of disease – particularly African buffalo, long recognised as carriers of FMD. That history of constant, low‑level exposure is now being reflected in how the breed is performing under pressure.
South Africa’s Struggle To Regain FMD-Free Status
The Nguni observations come against a grim backdrop. South Africa lost its internationally recognised FMD‑free status in 2019 after outbreaks spread well beyond traditional control zones. Since then, waves of infection have moved through major feedlot areas and extensive grazing regions.
A recent FMD map shows confirmed cases (in red) and suspected cases (in orange) across much of the country, underlining the scale of the challenge.
Earlier this year, Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen outlined a 10‑year FMD strategy built on:
- Widespread vaccination,
- Strict movement controls, and
- Stronger biosecurity at the wildlife–livestock interface.
Complicating the picture, there have been confirmed reports of vaccinated cattle still becoming infected with FMD. Experts have pointed to several factors, including:
- Waning immunity over time,
- Persistent wildlife reservoirs and cross‑contamination,
- Uncoordinated vaccination windows, and
- Incomplete geographic coverage that allows the virus to circulate.
In that environment, any genetic edge in how cattle respond to infection – recovering quickly rather than collapsing – becomes highly prized.
“Chalk And Cheese” Compared With Australia
Murdoch University’s Professor Pete Irons, a South African‑trained veterinarian now based in Western Australia, has been closely involved in bringing Nguni genetics to Australia through a cross‑breeding programme at Murdoch’s Whitby Falls Farm.
He told Beef Central that the African FMD situation is fundamentally different from disease‑free countries like Australia.
“The situation with FMD in Africa and Australia are like chalk and cheese, you just about can’t compare them,” Prof Irons said.
“In Africa the disease has always been around, it is just part of the ecosystem.”
In regions where cattle regularly mix with buffalo and other wildlife carrying the virus, he explained, natural selection over centuries has favoured animals that can tolerate exposure.
“Animals that don’t are just weeded out of the population over time,” he said.
However, he noted that not all South African cattle share this history. In many fenced, commercial systems, herds have been shielded from FMD, leaving them as naïve – and as vulnerable – as Australian cattle.
“So when they come into contact they are completely susceptible, they pick up the disease and they show signs of it and it is bad.”
Resilience, Not Immunity – Why That Distinction Matters
Prof Irons is quick to push back against any notion that Ngunis are some kind of magic bullet.
“Resilience does not mean immunity,” he emphasised.
“They do pick up the virus, they do transmit the virus to other animals. It means that they either don’t show any symptoms at all or they show very mild symptoms and they recover quickly.”
In other words, Nguni cattle can still propagate FMD within a herd or region. From a trade and regulatory perspective, they cannot be treated as a solution to an outbreak in the way a vaccine or effective movement control can.
But at farm level, their resilience can translate to fewer animals going off feed, lower mortality, faster recovery, and a better chance of maintaining fertility and milk production under disease pressure.
FFA Explainer:
Disease resilience means an animal can be infected but still function relatively well – maintaining weight, fertility, and survival. Immunity means the animal does not become infected at all, or clears the virus so fast that disease cannot establish. Resilient breeds still require vaccines and good biosecurity.
Beyond FMD: Ticks, Heat And Poor Grazing
Interest in Nguni cattle isn’t only about FMD. The breed has long been valued in southern Africa for a bundle of traits that make it a natural fit for low‑input systems:
- Tick tolerance – lowering the need for frequent dipping and reducing tick‑borne disease risks.
- Heat resistance – crucial as heatwaves become more frequent under climate change.
- High fertility – cows that calve regularly even under tough conditions.
- Ability to thrive on poor‑quality grazing with a high roughage component.
The breed is smaller framed, with a mature cow weight around 400 kg, well below many European breeds. That smaller body size comes with two important advantages in a warming, carbon‑constrained world:
- Lower maintenance feed requirements, allowing more cows per hectare on marginal land, and
- Lower methane emissions per animal than bigger breeds, a point underscored in the Beef Central report.
Prof Irons believes similar adaptive traits likely exist in many indigenous African and Bos indicus-derived breeds that come from FMD‑endemic regions.
“I think the same thing goes for pretty much any breed that had its origins in an area where FMD is endemic,” he said. “Bos indicus type cattle that evolved in India where foot and mouth is endemic would also have a degree of resistance.”
From Margins To Mainstream: Nguni’s Comeback In South Africa
Like many indigenous breeds, Ngunis were heavily crossbred and diluted in South Africa in past decades as farmers chased higher growth rates and heavier carcases with European genetics.
“There was a lot of cross breeding so the pure bred and fullblood Ngunis became quite scarce at that time,” Prof Irons recalled.
Over time, though, research began to validate what older stockmen already suspected: these cattle carry “really valuable characteristics”.
“They are tick resistant, have high fertility, amazing feed efficiency and ability to convert really poor quality grazing into growth while still maintaining breeding, and their ability to just survive and thrive in really harsh environments compared to European sourced cattle,” he said.
Recognising this, the South African Government began investing in preserving and propagating Ngunis. The breed has since made what Prof Irons calls an “amazing come back”.
Commenters responding to the Beef Central article from KwaZulu-Natal and Limpopo spoke of large, established Nguni studs and a renewed appetite for hardy genetics as FMD, drought, and input costs bite.
Nguni Genetics Travel To Australia – And Into The Classroom
Far from its African homeland, Nguni genetics are also attracting interest in Australia. According to estimates cited from the Rare Breeds Trust of Australia, there were about 11 Nguni breeders in the country with a combined herd of roughly 650 cows by 2025.
Murdoch University has recently joined that group, establishing a Nguni crossbred herd for teaching and research on its Western Australian campus.
First‑generation calves have been bred from Angus, Murray Grey, and Shorthorn cows, with Nguni sires. The animals are run alongside more traditional European types, creating a living laboratory for comparing growth, feed efficiency, temperament, and adaptability.
Prof Irons said Murdoch selected the breed very deliberately.
“Teaching and research is our core business, and essentially the ideal animal for teaching and research is something that is small, cheap to feed and maintain and docile and a very good temperament,” he explained.
“We can keep more Ngunis per hectare and per farm than we can the European types so it just made a lot of sense from what our needs are.”
The programme welcomed 32 Nguni cross calves last year, marking the formal introduction of the breed to Western Australia. The initiative has been supported by donations from Australian Nguni breeders, including Garlone Moulin, Henry Townsend, and Gawie Roux.
While some commentators questioned why Murdoch did not start with purebred Ngunis, Prof Irons noted that crossbreds still carry many of the desired traits and offer a pragmatic entry point for research in a new environment.
Lessons For Zimbabwe And The Region
For Zimbabwean cattle producers and policymakers, the Nguni story in South Africa and Australia echoes debates already underway at home. Under NDS1 and the Livestock Growth Plan, Government has highlighted the need to:
- Build a climate‑resilient national herd,
- Strengthen disease control, including around FMD‑prone border zones, and
- Promote indigenous and locally adapted breeds.
While Zimbabwe does not have Ngunis on a large scale, it has its own reservoirs of hardy genetics – from Mashona and Tuli to the long‑horned Sanga types that historically moved through the region. The South African experience reinforces three key messages:
- Indigenous genetics are an asset, not a relic. They can carry valuable disease‑resilience and environmental adaptation traits that become more important as climate and disease pressures intensify.
- Resilience needs policy support. Just as South Africa invested in preserving and multiplying Ngunis, Zimbabwe’s efforts to support locally adapted breeds will determine whether those genes are available when they are most needed.
- Biosecurity still comes first. No breed can replace vaccination, surveillance, and movement control in FMD management. Resilient animals should complement, not weaken, discipline around disease control.
FFA Explainer:
FMD-endemic vs FMD-free systems: In endemic areas, the virus circulates constantly, and over generations animals with better tolerance survive and breed. In FMD-free countries, herds are completely naïve, so an incursion can be catastrophic. Breeding for resilience is one tool, but keeping the virus out through strong border controls remains the priority.
As one South African Nguni breeder told Beef Central, the current crisis is forcing a rethink of an “obsession with feedlot animals and commercial breeds” in favour of more sustainable characteristics. For farmers in drought‑prone parts of Matabeleland, Masvingo, or the Lowveld, the idea of cattle that can survive heat, ticks, and periodic disease shocks while still calving regularly has obvious appeal.
The Nguni story is a reminder that sometimes, the genetics best equipped for tomorrow’s challenges are the ones that evolved here long before veterinary vaccines, imported semen, or climate models existed.
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