Production, traceability and the challenges of the industry

The Karoo, a huge South African semi-desert, is criss-crossed by unpaved roads. These paths lead to centuries-old farms where Angora goats are bred for their mohair. The country is responsible for more than half of the global production of this natural fiber.

Steel blades of wind pumps are the only thing that interrupts the ‘Veld’, the South African grassy steppe. After several kilometers on a bumpy track, curved gables appear, typical of Dutch colonial architecture.

“Wheatlands 1912,” reads one of them. “This is the newest building here,” explains farmer Lloyd Short, who grew up on the 7,700-acre family farm.

Wheatlands doesn’t owe its reputation to the charm of its elegant estate. The treasure of the place are its Angora goats. These unique animals have lop-eared ears, curved horns and a golden fleece. Their silky, soft curls are sold for up to 900 South African Rand (around 46 euros) per kilogram. They are used to make sweaters and knitwear, usually mixed with wool.

The Italian spinning mill Vitale Barberis Canonico, one of the most renowned manufacturers of suit fabrics, also sources South African mohair.

“The first two shears are the most lucrative,” explains Lloyd Short. The seventh-generation farmer collects an average of one kilogram per animal during the first shearing, and then one and a half kilograms during the second shearing. Weight increases slightly with age, but the fiber loses quality as the animal ages.

He owns about 2,000 Angora goats, the same number as his brother. The shorts are lucky to be the sole suppliers of a famous French fashion house. In this way, the brand ensures the traceability of its supply chain with a trusted producer and protects its image.

Recovery after incident

South African mohair experienced a crisis in 2018 that made the industry wary. The animal protection organization Peta had published a video of an incident that, according to the farmers, is extremely rare: a goat was euthanized after an artery was accidentally severed during shearing.

Overnight, many international brands publicly announced that they were ditching the fiber. It took two years to get the fashion world to return. This came after the introduction of a responsible agriculture seal, which also includes third-party audits.

“In 2020 the situation changed and demand began to pick up again,” explains Marco Coetzee, director of the Mohair South Africa industry association.

From Turkey to the Karoo

According to its own information, the country delivered 56 percent of global production in 2024. The sector creates around 30,000 jobs, including hundreds in the Karoo. This has become an unexpected home for the Angora goat, a breed native to Turkey.

Its introduction in the first half of the 19th century is unclear. Was it a gift from an Ottoman dignitary or an import by a British military officer? Accounts vary, but nearly two centuries later, Angora goats are feasting on the local succulents.

“You’ll find magnificent veld species here, sweet-tasting plants. Almost everything is edible,” says Sean Hobson, owner of Martyrsford Farm, which has been raising Angora goats since 1865.

“Regions with higher humidity are not as suitable for fiber production,” he explains. “You find a lot more parasites and ticks there.”

To protect themselves, the goats are regularly put through immersion baths between the two annual shearings. A conditioner bath also serves to give the curls a ‘good start’ to ‘create that beautiful curl’, according to Hobson.

“The whole world buys mohair, especially because of its shine. It not only shines, but also makes the colors shine,” describes Pierre van der Vyver, managing director of the broker House of Fiber.

The smell of a sheepfold fills his warehouse, where hundreds of bales of mohair rest, just a stone’s throw from the docks of Gqeberha (formerly Port Elizabeth). Together with their main competitor OVK, also from South Africa, they share more than 70 percent of the global market almost equally. Neighboring Lesotho alone accounts for 16 percent of this.

Almost all customers, with the exception of Vitale Barberis Canonico, buy it in bales. It is processed by a duopoly, which in turn is South African (Samil and Stucken). This shares the sector equally and processes fibers from Australia and the United Kingdom.

“The Chinese would like to compete with us, but fortunately working with mohair requires a lot of technical know-how,” analyzes van der Vyver. “It’s a much slower process than wool. It’s a special fiber.” It thrives in the desert.