On a wet and windy desolate day in the Pembrokeshire countryside, Jack Gradidge tends to his herd. He cleans, feeds and cares for the beasts which provide him with his livelihood. The herbivorous animals chew on leaves and lazily roam around their paddocks. This herd however is not made up of cattle, but black rhinoceros.
In October 2015, Folly Farm introduced two critically endangered Eastern black rhinos to its Kifaru Reserve. This animal reserve is Folly Farm’s largest and is ensuring that Nkosi, five, and Manyara, 17, are treated like African royalty. There are now less than 650 Eastern black rhinos left in the wild due to widespread poaching. Yet, this flagship conservation effort is paving the way for these gentle giants to once again roam free in their homeland without fear or fences.
“The first time I met them, there were mixed emotions of apprehension, nervousness and excitement,” Jack recalls. But, having studied at Sparsholt College and undertaken work placements at both Longleat and Chester Zoo, he was more than qualified to take on the role as head rhino keeper. Since the pair’s arrival, Jack has developed a close bond with the animals and talks about them like friends. He says, “Nkosi is very childish, playful and cheeky. He loves attention. Manyara is a little more reserved and stubborn. She’s a bit like a teenager!”
A different kind of herd
If South African rhino farmer, John Hume’s advice is headed, rhino farming could soon become commonplace across British farms. He suggests that rhinos should be farmed like cattle for their horns, in the same way cows are farmed for milk or meat. These horns are in hot demand in Asian markets, as it is believed to be a status symbol, possessing healing properties able to cure maladies from hangovers to cancers. Talking to JobShadow, millionaire Hume says, “Conservation will only be successful when people stand to gain from it on socio-economic levels.” Along with lobby group, KZN Wildlife, Hume is campaigning for the legalisation of the rhino horn trade, which he believes will result in fewer rhinos being poached in the wild.
At present, John Hume’s cattle-ranch style farm near the Kruger National Park in South Africa’s North West Province is the largest in the world and is home to 1,160 rhinos. Since 1992, he has harvested their horns every 18 months, which has no detrimental effects on the animals, as it grows back like human hair. In its lifetime, a male rhino produces an average of 50-60 kilos of horn, with a female able to produce between 30-40 kilos. Hume argues that his innovative rhino breeding programme produces 10 times the average horn that one poached animal would produce. Yet, it also requires dancing with the devils of poaching.
Against rhino farming
Despite Hume’s farm aiming to conserve the rhino population, Tisha Wardlow from the Fight for Rhinos charity, argues that farming rhinos is not a sustainable option. She says that farming these animals is not economically viable due to the high costs of food, land upkeep, and veterinary and security costs.
“Rhinos are not ‘farmable’ animals. They are not herd animals like cattle – they are more solitary,” Tisha explains. As a result, when large groups of rhinos come into contact with one another, disease often becomes rife. Tisha raises the issue that nature cannot always be manipulated to the will of man, no matter how noble their intentions.
In October 2015, Folly Farm introduced two critically endangered Eastern black rhinos to its Kifaru Reserve. This animal reserve is Folly Farm’s largest and is ensuring that Nkosi, five, and Manyara, 17, are treated like African royalty. There are now less than 650 Eastern black rhinos left in the wild due to widespread poaching. Yet, this flagship conservation effort is paving the way for these gentle giants to once again roam free in their homeland without fear or fences.
“The first time I met them, there were mixed emotions of apprehension, nervousness and excitement,” Jack recalls. But, having studied at Sparsholt College and undertaken work placements at both Longleat and Chester Zoo, he was more than qualified to take on the role as head rhino keeper. Since the pair’s arrival, Jack has developed a close bond with the animals and talks about them like friends. He says, “Nkosi is very childish, playful and cheeky. He loves attention. Manyara is a little more reserved and stubborn. She’s a bit like a teenager!”
A different kind of herd
If South African rhino farmer, John Hume’s advice is headed, rhino farming could soon become commonplace across British farms. He suggests that rhinos should be farmed like cattle for their horns, in the same way cows are farmed for milk or meat. These horns are in hot demand in Asian markets, as it is believed to be a status symbol, possessing healing properties able to cure maladies from hangovers to cancers. Talking to JobShadow, millionaire Hume says, “Conservation will only be successful when people stand to gain from it on socio-economic levels.” Along with lobby group, KZN Wildlife, Hume is campaigning for the legalisation of the rhino horn trade, which he believes will result in fewer rhinos being poached in the wild.
At present, John Hume’s cattle-ranch style farm near the Kruger National Park in South Africa’s North West Province is the largest in the world and is home to 1,160 rhinos. Since 1992, he has harvested their horns every 18 months, which has no detrimental effects on the animals, as it grows back like human hair. In its lifetime, a male rhino produces an average of 50-60 kilos of horn, with a female able to produce between 30-40 kilos. Hume argues that his innovative rhino breeding programme produces 10 times the average horn that one poached animal would produce. Yet, it also requires dancing with the devils of poaching.
Against rhino farming
Despite Hume’s farm aiming to conserve the rhino population, Tisha Wardlow from the Fight for Rhinos charity, argues that farming rhinos is not a sustainable option. She says that farming these animals is not economically viable due to the high costs of food, land upkeep, and veterinary and security costs.
“Rhinos are not ‘farmable’ animals. They are not herd animals like cattle – they are more solitary,” Tisha explains. As a result, when large groups of rhinos come into contact with one another, disease often becomes rife. Tisha raises the issue that nature cannot always be manipulated to the will of man, no matter how noble their intentions.
Poaching and profit
Despite marked opposition from conservation groups, some UK farmers support the idea of rhino farming in the UK. Brian Richards, a milk farmer from Carmarthenshire says, “It’s a good idea if they’re farmed properly, in proper welfare conditions.” He explains that his skills working with cattle could be transferable to rhino farming. “Some skills would need to be updated, but the principle of keeping livestock 24/7 would be similar,” Richards adds. He is confident that farmers as a whole are “very adaptable” and would only require minimal changes to their farms to succeed at this bold venture.
Taking the reins
As a result of the current farming crisis, many UK farms are leaving behind the familiar friends of old McDonald’s farm. Instead, many farmers are encouraging unconventional and exotic animals to take the reins, and are proving that diversification has only beefed up their farms’ profitability and popularity. Between 1995-2000, farm profitability dropped from £8.1 billion to £2.2 billion, which makes it no surprise that a total of 56% of the UK‘s 56,100 farms have engaged in some form of diversification. Diversified farms now make up an approximated additional income of £380m for UK farmers.
The agricultural industry is facing a period of uncertainty and angst due to the CAP reform and EU referendum. In June 2015, the Department of Food and Rural Affairs also found that farmers only receive 23.66 pence per litre of milk, when the estimated cost of production was between 30-32 pence. Tensions came to a head when farmers protested in supermarkets by leading their herds around the dairy isles to raise awareness of their plight.
Farming unlikely beasts
In order to avoid falling victim to plummeting prices and political pressures, UK farms such as Catanger Llamas in Northamptonshire decided to diversify their hobby farm into a business. Farm owner, Mary Pryse explains that she was enchanted by her one “guard llama,” and therefore invested in more flock to trek and breed them. “They had to earn their keep,” Mary laughs. This became a new commercial opportunity and a safety net for the farm. “The Foot and Mouth outbreak stopped everything in its tracks,” Mary recalls. Leisure and tourism had far more potential, so she decided to sell her conventional animals and spent time starting a website and using social media. The farm has now doubled its income due to its successful diversification gamble.
In Lincolnshire, White House Farm is the picture perfect painting of a traditional 16th century farmhouse. Yet, the farm supplies the unconventional Oslinc business, which specialises in ostrich meat. At present, the farm houses 22 breeding ostriches, which can weigh up to 150 kilos each. “They’re quite big compared to a chicken,” chuckles Brian Tomlin, director of the business. The farm decided to diversify as ostrich meat is a lucrative quality product which is high in protein, but low in fat. Tomlin says that the ostriches are “hardy animals” and well-adapted to the British weather. Despite common perceptions of ostriches’ temperamental nature, Tomlin says, “There’s no problem handling them. Their natural instinct is to run away.”
A more adventurous approach to farming is being implemented by Johnsons of Old Hurst. As well as offering the conventional farm favourites, Johnsons’ farm yard harbours an added bite. A fourth generation farmer, Andy Johnson chose to seek new opportunities in the mid-1990s when milk became an unsustainable source of income. He contemplated abandoning farming completely, before choosing to diversify. In 2006, Andy applied for a wild animal license, and became the UK’s first alligator farmer. The alligators, named Kisses and Cuddles, are versatile and are used for butchery waste disposal, entertaining visitors and are also part of the alligator conservation project.
Economics and ethics
Farmers in the UK have proved that the exotic can thrive where the ordinary once lived. Rhinos grazing in British fields might be an ingenious and progressive investment into the futures of endangered beasts, or an exploitative circus disguised as a veneer of conservation by an eccentric visionary. Either way, rhino farming has caused a stampede within the farming community. Rhino keeper, Jack sums up the volatile situation by saying, “Farming rhinos is a grey area. No one needs a rhino horn other than a rhino. But, if it meant saving the species, it’s something to consider.”
Farming might yet prove to be the perfect ally for conservation, but if this partnership is not hastened from being an infantile proposition into an ethical and manageable plan of action, the Eastern black rhinos might become casualties of brutal action from poachers and impotent inaction from the wider world.
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