Farmer's Weekly

At the dawn of 2022, most of us were probably pretty postive about the year ahead. COVID-19 restrictions were on the wane and our electricity supply seemed somewhat constant. The drought had broken in many production regions and business confidence w

Africa Regional Apimondia (bee) Symposium, Inkosi Albert Luthuli Convention Centre, Durban. Visit apimondiaafrica2023.org.za. Cannabis Expo, GrandWest, Cape Town. Visit thecannabisexpo.co.za. Online Field Guide Course. Email Meagan Gilfillan at enqui

The views expressed in our weekly opinion piece do not necessarily reflect those of Farmer's Weekly. This is an edited excerpt of the keynote address given by Prof James Blignaut at the MPO-Nedbank Stewardship Awards event on 30 November 2022. Bligna

EDITORIAL TEAM Editor Janine Ryan, janiner@caxton.co.za Managing editor Ellis Mnyandu, ellis@caxton.co.za News editor Julinda Schroeder, julindas@caxton.co.za Designers Louis Kruger and Mario Ferlito Senior copy editor Paul Suiter Copy editors Fanie

There is consensus among agricultural stakeholders that sustainable growth in South Africa's agriculture sector cannot be achieved solely through the expansion of production, but that an extension of export markets should be a key pillar of growth. T

South Africa's agriculture industry has experienced tremendous growth over the past 10 years on the back of an export-led growth strategy, driven primarily by high-value products such as fruit, wine and animal fibres. Global demand for local products

Despite the challenges faced by the global citrus sector over the past year, there is much room for growth, provided 'health messaging' is stepped up. This was according to industry experts addressing this year's virtual Global Citrus Congress. Speak

The seven-year drought in the Namaqualand region of the Northern Cape, especially in the area west of the N7 national road, is continuing unabated and farmers find themselves in dire financial straits. This was according to Nicol Jansen, president of

The winter grain harvest has left many farmers, especially those in the Swartland region of the Western Cape, financially worse off than they were before the planting season began. This was according to André Kirsten, a Swartland farmer and the vice-

In the wake of a third difficult year in terms of animal-disease outbreaks, South Africa's National Animal Health Forum (NAHF) has expressed its scepticism about Onderstepoort Biological Products' (OBP) ability to produce sufficient quantities of vac

Doing business in 2023 could prove much harder as major industries continue to buckle under the strain of supply chain disruptions that have led to shortages of critical components such as microchips, as well as key agricultural inputs such as fertil

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations' (FAO) Food Price Index eased slightly in November, marking the eighth consecutive month of its decline since reaching a record high in March following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. This fal

Ever since the ill-advised and scientifically flawed 'Livestock's Long Shadow' was published by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in 2006, agriculture, and livestock farming in particular, has become a handy scapegoat for cl

We play the ball as it bounces on the field. Our main focus in recent years has been to involve the next generation in such a way that they can live out their passion within the economic parameters of the business. We're positive about agriculture, a

A visit to Australia in 2004 showed me the importance of scale. By combining scale and diversification, I've been able to invest in mechanisation and technology, spread costs across a bigger base, and mitigate risk. In turn, this has enabled me to ta

The year started on a high with the opening of a new chicken house on the farm. But the excitement didn't last very long because feed prices quickly escalated, and we had two price increases during the year. Diesel prices followed suit, and we had on

I'd like to improve our productivity to obtain higher yields, but at the same time [manage costs]. With input costs rising, we need to look at ways to counter this so that we still reflect a profit at the end of the season. I enjoy being amongst the

In terms of the grapes and stone fruit destined for export, it was not a good year. The margins of both were significantly reduced by high shipping costs and the dysfunctionality of South Africa's harbours. Shipping costs doubled and we had to pay ex

The importance of ethical and knowledgeable agronomical services can't be overemphasised. I've gained a great deal of experience in proven practices and principles, but I've also tested modern and revolutionary ideas in practice. It's important to sh

The past year has been a challenging one, but one thing that has stood out over these 12 months as I look through all of the Farmer's Weekly issues published this year, is a sense of community. Of course, as always, we've published many articles abou

We had a mixed year, with highlights and lowlights. On a positive note, our crop was up 25% from last year due to favourable weather conditions. We also had very good sound kernel recovery, which boosted the income we received for our nuts. On the do

In the article, 'Partnerships pay off for Western Cape nursery' (see FW, 26 August), Farmer's Weekly travelled to Oudtshoorn to visit Kobus se Kwekery, which won Klein Karoo Seed Production's award for the best emerging agricultural business in both

The article 'Commercialising communal goat farming in KwaZulu-Natal' (see FW, 4 February) focuses on the Mdukatshani Rural Development Project (MRDP), an initiative helping communal farmers in the Msinga Local Municipality improve their production of

In another one of my favourite stories for the year, Farmer's Weekly travelled to India to explore the country's dairy sector (see FW, 21 October). India is the world's biggest producer of milk, contributing around 23% of total milk production. Howev

One thing I have always been particularly passionate about is the nurturing of children. All children are entitled to a good education and nutrition, so that they have the best chance in life to become successful individuals. Unfortunately, this is l

Guinness World Records 2023 (Guinness, R430) An institution of a book like this has to deliver on expectations and also surprise, which means treading a fine line between tradition and innovation. In the latest edition of Guinness World Records, awar

When I buy honey, I see that some manufacturers mark their products as 'non-irradiated'. Does that have anything to do with the quality of the honey or the type of bees that produced it? Kind regards, Anonymous Raw honey, which is not irradiated (tha

HOW TO PLAY: Fill in the grid so that each row and column, as well as each of the 3 x 3 squares, contains all the digits from 1 to 9. Look out for the answers to this week's Sudoku puzzles in next week's magazine. ■

A naturally occurring virus co-discovered by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) in the US may offer a way to undermine a costly fungal threat to wheat, barley and other small-grain crops, according to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). The fun