Charles Freeme, President of the Meatmaster Sheep Breeders’ Society South Africa, is a full time farmer doing Meatmaster Stud breeding and also have various other interests in small stock industry.

He is married to Vivienne and they only have daughters and many grandkids .

History of the Meatmasters

The Meatmaster breed is an unique and dynamic breed which brings so many facets to the smallstock industry and has grown in popularity over the last decade because it has proved to be what its set out to do , that is” Natures Moneymaker.”  Its been around since 1994 and first performance recording was done in 2000 at the ARC.  The National department of agriculture  then officially recognized the breed in May 2007, and has grown from strength to strength .

Charles Freeme.

Charles began with his B3genetics Pty Ltd in 2013 , “however we have been breeding with Meatmasters since December 2016 , when we purchased 5 Meatmasters and a Ram, growing our business to around 350 Stud Animals,” he said.

“The breed interested me because of its diverse phenotypically colours and the promonace , character.and the fact that its a easy to breed sheep which has multiply births, strong lambs and growth.  The herding instincts and the strong Rams which showed their presence on the farms.”

Key features of the meatmaster breed:

  • Reproduction
  • Growth
  • Multiple births
  • Quality of milk
  • Mothering abilities
  • Herd instincts
  • Coverage
  • Resistance to disease
  • Low maintenance and virility with Rams .
  • This breed encompasses so much within its geneology , that the success recipe.

Charles vision for the breed is to see the meatmaster breed grow, and to serve the members to the best of his ability, giving structure and working with all members to ensure stability and growth.

“To navigate around challenges and find the best solutions that can be implemented and executed to the benefit of all the members of the society . Creating opportunities for all breeders to showcase there genetics in various platforms , driving quality above quantity and setting a standard that can be upheld by all its members.  Uniting the breeders so that we can gain market share and thus making the meatmasters your first choice of breed. Team work amongst the Board members and listerning to our members so that we can progress into the future , gaining market share both Nationally and internationally,” he added.

What the Meatmaster breeding society want to achieve in the next two years:

“We have embarked on a rollout plan nationally and have already established 5 Clubs which act under the umbrella of the Society , which  affords our members the opportunity to grow within that space , by offering Auctions , mentorship, training courses, and participation at events. A huge marketing campaign has been undertaken and our digital presence is growing rapidly, our website www.meatmastersa.co.za, Facebook group ( 56000 members), YouTube channel, Instagram , all form part of our strategy.  We also ensuring that conformity and visual awareness is maintained at Auction, so that the  look and feel will be experienced at all Auction, under the Auspice of society.

“We also on a drive to educate our breeders/farmers with training and equipping them with the correct skills and knowledge so that they can make the best informed decision.  Our awareness drive is to promote Genuine Meatmasters in the global industry on all the mentioned strategies,” Charles said.

Charles want to give exposure to commercial farmers by way of farmers days and workshops they encourage and motivate the Meatmaster breed and breed of choice , and showcase educational talks from various stakeholders in the industry. “Invitation to Auctions , farm visits so that the commercial farmer can see the value add to his farming operation. Given performance testing and record keeping which substantiates the facts on growth and reproduction,” he said.

Interested farmers can contact Meatmasters offices in Bloemfontein where they have a full time secretary (Lizanne Vermeulen-secretary@meatmastersa.co.za) or alternatively they can visit their website at www.meatmastersa.co.za  and go to the society index and apply online.