NoseRing
The true cost of weaning stress in an extensive beef cattle production system
Leo Roets is a cattle farmer from Piet Plessis in the North West province of South Africa. Leo has been farming Bovelder cattle since 1996 in a family business with his father and father-in-law. He farms with about 650 cattle on about 5 000 hectares of natural grazing in[...]
EasyWean® NoseRings® provide stress-free weaning that works
In the dry region of Piet Plessis in North West, cattle farmer Judy Vercueil has spent more than 30 years refining a system that puts both productivity and animal welfare first. Running a herd of approximately 70 Bonsmara cows in a cow-calf weaner setup, she has built her operation[...]
EasyWean® NoseRings®: Stress-free weaning and healthier herds
Weaning is widely considered the most stressful event in a calf’s life. This is due to the abrupt nature of being physically separated from its mother, combined with psychological isolation and nutritional instability. Calves experience severe stress The bond between a cow and her calf is one of the[...]
EasyWean®: Gentle weaning, stronger returns
It began with a simple question in the dry grazing zones of South Africa: How do we make weaning less stressful for both animals and farmers? That seed, planted in 1997, grew into EasyWean®’s NoseRing®/NeusRing®. Developed by farmers, for farmers, right here in Southern Africa’s toughest grazing conditions, and[...]
How can we help address the challenges facing farmers affected by the foot-and-mouth crisis?
On 14 January 2026, the Minister of Agriculture, John Steenhuisen, announced the government’s new containment strategy to tackle the rampant spread of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) throughout most of South Africa. Outbreaks of FMD have been confirmed in most provinces, with the North West, Kwa-Zulu Natal, Limpopo, Gauteng, the Free[...]