How To Select Beef Cattle Breeds For Meat Production In Nigeria
Beef cattle breeds are those cattle in Nigeria that are specifically reared or meat production. If you are venturing into cattle farming in Nigeria, you need to decide the particular niche to pitch your tent. When it comes to cattle rearing in Nigeria, you are in the business for either milk production, meat (beef) production, or both milk and beef production.
The objective of this article is to bring to you the different beef cattle breeds in Nigeria. Therefore, if you want to venture into cattle meat (beef) production in Nigeria, then you are reading the right piece. As a beef production farmer in Nigeria, you knowledge of the beef cattle breeds is very important.
Read: How to start dairy farming in Nigeria for milk production
Your ability to identify the best among these beef cattle breeds will greatly improve your profit in beef production. In order to make the best profit from cattle rearing in Nigeria for meat production, you must have to select the best suitable beef cattle breeds for your cattle farming business.
List Of Beef Cattle Breeds In Nigeria
For the purpose of beef production in Nigeria, below are the breeds of cattle best known for meat production.
- Red bororo cattle breed
- N’Dama cattle breed
- White Fulani or Bunaji breed
- Muturu cattle breed
- Keteku cattle breed
- Kuri cattle breed
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Red Bororo cattle breed
The red bororo is among the many beef cattle breeds most loved by the Fulani tribe in Nigeria. They are characterized by their red skin color and long horns. This particular breed of cattle is mainly reared for beef (meat) production in Nigeria.
See: How to select dairy cattle breeds in Nigeria
They are also capable of working long distances in herds. If you are going to focus on cattle meat production in Nigeria, then your best choice is the red bororo.
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N’Dama cattle breed
The N’Dama has its origin from Guinea, from where to spread through the African continent. Its resistant to tse-tse fly has made it almost the choice of every cattle farmer in Nigeria. When you consider the size of the different beef cattle breeds in Nigeria, the N’Dama may be the smallest but its carcass to meat ratio is about 50%.
The above feature makes the N’Dama cattle breed one of the most popular cow breeds for meat production. Their beef contains low fat and have very pleasant flavor. They are mainly characterized by their lyre-shaped horns, short and thin hair, low height, and the sandy colors of their skin
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White Fulani or bunaji breed
This particular cow breed is native of Nigeria and the neighboring West African countries. The white Fulani is mainly bred or meat and milk production, although they are sometimes used for drafting purposes.
One of the major reasons why this bunaji breed is loved by cattle farmers in Nigeria is their ability to thrive under the scorching heat of the sun. Characterized by their long legs which allow them to walk long distances, wide-set long horns, and white skin color.
They are found to be less susceptible to internal parasites and dermatophilosis than other Nigerian beef cattle breeds.
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Muturu cattle breed
This is another cattle breed in Nigeria bred for the sole purpose of meat (beef) production. They are also used for farming activities. A matured male muturu cattle stands at a height of 95cm while the females are known to be about 88cm.
There are two sub-breeds within the Muturu cattle breed in Nigeria. There are ones that inhabit the forest regions and another living in the savannah. The savannah sub-breeds are taller than the forest sub-breeds in Nigeria.
Savannah grown sub-breeds are characterized by black skin color while the forest sub-breeds have black and white skin coloration. They are also known to be resistant to tse-tse fly.
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Keteku cattle breed
The keteku cattle is a natural crossbreed between the white Fulani (Budaji) and Muturu beef cattle breeds in Nigeria. Keteku is found mostly in Western Nigeria, particularly in Oyo and Ondo states.
It is characterized by white coat color with black ears and nose, long and muscular body with poorly developed hindquarters.
As a cattle farmer in Nigeria with cow meat (beef) production in mind, you can always bank on the keteku cattle breed for commercial meat production in Nigeria.
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Kuri cattle breed
The kuri cattle breed is bred for both meat and milk production in Nigeria, as well as farming activities. Mainly found in North-Eastern Nigeria and the Chad basin, they are also known as white Lake Chand, Dongole, Kuburi, Budumu, Budduma, etc.
They are characterized by their unmistakable gigantic horns in the form of a bulb. The Kuri cattle breed is also among the beef tattle breeds that comes in small sizes. Their horns can reach a staggering 55cm in diameter and 130cm in length.
The height of the bulls ranges between 150cm-180cm, while the cows have heights between 135-145cm. A mature male kuri cattle breed weigh about 475kg while the cows weigh 400kg.
The above listed beef cattle breeds should be your best pick when it comes to beef production in Nigeria. As a farmer in the cattle farming business, you should do well to carry out your own personal research on the aforementioned beef cattle breeds in Nigeria.
Venturing into beef production in Nigeria without having good knowledge of the various beef cattle breeds will be very disastrous. In order to be successful in your meat production in Nigeria, you really need to know your onion when it comes to selecting the best beef cattle breeds.
ATTENTION…
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