Proportion of local livestock breeds at risk of extinction in South Africa
South Africa: Proportion of local livestock breeds at risk of extinction was 81.0% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Proportion of local livestock breeds at risk of extinction in South Africa, 2000–2025
Source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – processed by Our World in Data. Measured in %.
Analysis
In 2025, proportion of local livestock breeds at risk of extinction in South Africa stood at 81.0%.
That represents a change of down 2.4% on the previous year and up 1.2% over ten years.
Over the whole period, proportion of local livestock breeds at risk of extinction in South Africa peaked at 100.0% in 2002 and was at its lowest, 67.0%, in 2021.
That places South Africa 47th out of 139 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 26 years of available data.
Proportion of local livestock breeds at risk of extinction in South Africa, year by year
| Year | % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 96.0% | — |
| 2001 | 96.0% | +0.0% |
| 2002 | 100.0% | +4.2% |
| 2003 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 2004 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 2005 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 2006 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 2007 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 2008 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 2009 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 2010 | 100.0% | +0.0% |
| 2011 | 83.0% | -17.0% |
| 2012 | 83.0% | +0.0% |
| 2013 | 80.0% | -3.6% |
| 2014 | 80.0% | +0.0% |
| 2015 | 80.0% | +0.0% |
| 2016 | 80.0% | +0.0% |
| 2017 | 86.0% | +7.5% |
| 2018 | 86.0% | +0.0% |
| 2019 | 86.0% | +0.0% |
| 2020 | 86.0% | +0.0% |
| 2021 | 67.0% | -22.1% |
| 2022 | 78.0% | +16.4% |
| 2023 | 78.0% | +0.0% |
| 2024 | 83.0% | +6.4% |
| 2025 | 81.0% | -2.4% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 99.2% | 96.0% | 100.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 84.4% | 80.0% | 100.0% | 10 |
| 2020s | 78.8% | 67.0% | 86.0% | 6 |
Countries ranked near South Africa
More reference data data for South Africa
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 0.5111 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 8.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 13.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 0.7468 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Indirect emissions (N2O) - Agricultural Soils 13.63 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure applied to Soils 1.71 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure Management 1.49 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Manure left on Pasture 41.1 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - IPCC Agriculture 63.65 (2050)
- Emission Totals - Emissions (N2O) - Crop Residues 4.07 (2050)
Frequently asked questions
- What is proportion of local livestock breeds at risk of extinction in South Africa?
- Proportion of local livestock breeds at risk of extinction in South Africa was 81.0% in 2025, according to Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – processed by Our World in Data.
- What is the highest proportion of local livestock breeds at risk of extinction recorded in South Africa?
- The highest recorded value was 100.0% in 2002.
- What is the lowest proportion of local livestock breeds at risk of extinction recorded in South Africa?
- The lowest recorded value was 67.0% in 2021.
- How does South Africa rank for proportion of local livestock breeds at risk of extinction?
- South Africa ranks 47th out of 139 countries with data for 2025.
- Is proportion of local livestock breeds at risk of extinction rising or falling in South Africa?
- Over the last ten years it is up 1.2%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this South Africa data come from?
- The figures come from Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations – processed by Our World in Data, published as part of Proportion of local livestock breeds at risk of extinction. Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 26 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (Our World in Data).
About this data
Proportion of local breeds classified as being at risk of extinction as a share of local breeds with known level of extinction risk (%).