Johannesburg - When you stand in front of a shelf full of lamb struggling to decide what you are going to put in your basket, there is a story behind each of those cuts of lamb that few people are aware of.

In Lamb Champs: Die hart en siel van skaapboerdery, a new documentary series starting on 16 March at 20:00 on kykNET (DStv channel 144), Minki van der Westhuizen travels the country to tell the story of six sheep farmers. This six-episode series follows the farmers on their journey to the Lamb Champs competition, which was held in Pretoria in 2024 and where the top sheep farmer walked away with R160 000 in prizes.

The Lamb Champs competition was started by Saai (Southern Africa Agri Initiative) because they wanted to put the story of family farmers and their lamb on the world map.

“We braai lamb when we have special people around us,” says Francois Rossouw, CEO of Saai. “It is a meal that means more. It is the scent of memories, of being together, of family. It is that moment when a family gathers around the fire, when friends laugh together while the embers glow. Sheep is not just meat – it is a beacon of tradition.”

Lamb Champs: Die hart en siel van skaapboerdery follows six sheep farmers – some have been settled on a family farm for generations, but others are the first generation to hire land and start farming with sheep. The backgrounds of the farmers may differ, but they all have two things in common: pride and passion.

“This is not just an agricultural series – it is a story of family, tradition and heritage. It is an invitation to consumers to see where their meat really comes from, to have a personal connection with food again, and to understand the true value of family farming,” says Saai in a media statement.

With soulful interviews, humour and humanity, and cinematography that will take your breath away, Lamb Champs: Die hart en siel van skaapboerdery is a series about much more than just sheep farming. Yes, it takes the viewer to where the lamb starts its journey to the store shelf, but it also tells stories of perseverance and of farmers and the people in their lives who always make a plan.

The Lamb Champs competition is proudly sponsored by Pick n Pay, in association with Toyota.

“We are deeply grateful to our partners, headline sponsor Pick ‘n Pay and associate sponsor Toyota, who are helping us build a world where family farmers not only survive but thrive,” says Francois. “Pick n Pay did more than just be a sponsor – they created shelf space, involved their buyers and made a promise to make the distance between farmer and consumer smaller.”

Lamb Champs: Die hart en siel van skaapboerdery starts on 16 March at 20:00 on kykNET (DStv channel 144) and will be available on DStv Stream and Catch Up.