The Heifer Project had humble beginnings. An American, Dan West, was working as a volunteer during the Spanish Civil War, handing out powdered milk to children. When the milk ran out but the line of children didn’t, Dan realised that if families could produce their own milk, they’d be spared the indignity of queuing for handouts.
Not long after that, in 1944, Dan sent his first shipment of 17 cows to families in Puerto Rico. From the start, he realised that every recipient had to become a donor. And so the Heifer pledge was born: each recipient of a Heifer farm animal must pass on its first female offspring to another poverty-stricken family.
Today, Heifer has helped over 40 million people throughout the world. Heifer International South Africa was established in 1999. We have assisted over 3000 households in communities where there was little hope, with high levels of unemployment and malnutrition, and a degraded environment.
Heifer International South Africa currently works in three provinces, namely Eastern Cape, KwaZulu Natal and Limpopo. The Head office is based in KwaZulu Natal, Bothas Hill.
