Table of contents for 7 February 2020 in Farmer's Weekly

One of the great joys of working as an agricultural journalist is the opportunities we sometimes get to travel to the very remote areas of different countries to meet farmers who live in places somewhat forgotten by the fast passage of time. Often it is nothing other than the stubborn insistence of farmers that ‘what isn’t broken doesn’t need fixing’ that keeps traditional ways of doing things alive long after more modern solutions have been commercialised by the agricultural technology and machinery giants. But other times, farmers stick to seemingly impractical and outdated ways because the end result justifies the hard labour. On a farm I recently visited near Parma in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna, famous for its prosciutto ham and Parmesan cheese, several steps in the cheesemaking…

Food crops and bees Dear Bill, Planting sunflowers was my way of trying to attract honeybees to pollinate my food garden in Pinetown, KwaZulu-Natal, but due to various challenges, I am now looking for a source of Mason bees, as I believe these are better pollinators than honeybees. Do you have any suggestion as to where I may be able to find them, or how to attract them to my garden? I have also started with half a box of black soldier flies for pollination purposes. I have used Eisenia fetida composting earthworms for the past 25 years to create good-quality topsoil for my organic food crops. Kind regards, Natalie Rowles Dear Natalie, You don’t have to plant crops to attract bees to your vegetables. While the sunflowers you planted…

Southern Africa is home to unique indigenous plants, from which speciality vegetable oils are produced, including marula oil, Kalahari melon seed oil, and ximenia oil. Other Southern African oils, such as mongongo oil, Cape chestnut oil and mafura butter, are still quite new to international markets. Most of these vegetable oils are produced by cold-pressing seeds or kernels that contain emollients, as well as skin-or hair-conditioning properties. Thus, these oils are used in the manufacture of cosmetic products such as skin- and haircare products, with cosmetic manufacturers increasingly using vegetable oils instead of mineral oils in their products. The proportion of Southern African vegetable oils used in a final product can range from a low percentage (in most skin- and hair-care products) to as high as 100% (in massage oils).…

Livestock show organisers have joined forces to establish protocols that will help these bodies host events in 2020, as well as in future. This was in response to the lack of any indication from government as to when the national ban on livestock gatherings would be lifted. The ban was imposed last year to prevent the spread of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD). The organisers of six major agricultural shows, namely the Bloem Show, the Royal Show, Nampo Alfa, Agri-Expo, Nampo Harvest Day and Nampo Cape, recently met to discuss the issue. In a joint statement, plans were announced to develop a “science-based biosecurity protocol” to facilitate the safe hosting of shows. THE ORGANISERS OF THE SIX BIG SHOWS MET TO DISCUSS THE ISSUE The director of the Veterinarian Network, Dr Danie…

Organised agriculture and livestock farmers in KwaZulu-Natal have called on the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (KZN DARD) to announce when the R20 million earmarked for emergency drought relief would become available, and how beneficiaries would be determined. In a statement issued in the fourth quarter of 2019, the KZN DARD said that it had set aside R20 million in relief funding to buy emergency feed and veterinary pharmaceuticals for livestock farmers in the province who had been negatively affected by drought conditions. The statement specified that beneficiaries would be “affected farmers from land reform farms, communal livestock owners, and farmers and livestock projects supported by [the KZN] DARD”. Livestock farmers and representatives of organised agriculture told Farmer’s Weekly that they had not heard of any emergency feed…

South Africa has a higher water demand than what is available, and efficient water use is thus important to ensure sustainability. This was according to the acting director general of the Department of Water and Sanitation, Mbulelo Tshangana, who recently published a notice in the Government Gazette, requiring some irrigators to install water meters and report their water consumption to the department. “The Department of Water and Sanitation instructs all water users who are not members of an irrigation board or water users’ association, at the water user’s expense, to install a water measuring device for all water taken for commercial irrigation purposes according to the Government Gazette Notice No. 131 of 2017 within 30 working days of this notice. The selection, installation, operation and maintenance of water measuring devices…

Health professionals and experts in crop protection have expressed concern about the risks posed by the potential spread of common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia) across South Africa if effective control measures are not implemented soon. In a paper published in AgriEco, crop protection expert Dr Charlie Reinhardt explained that while its natural habitat was North America, common ragweed had become one of the world’s most widespread weeds. Its high adaptability to a wide range of climates and soil types allowed common ragweed to proliferate in areas where human activities had disturbed the natural environment. In response to questions from Farmer’s Weekly, CropLife SA said that while it was not aware of any significant stands or populations of this weed in South Africa, “the novelty lies in the discovery of [its] pollen”.…

The transporting of fruit for export in high cube containers has become illegal overnight, because the Department of Transport has neglected to sign a moratorium to prevent a ban on these containers. The previous moratorium expired on 31 December 2019, and the new document, which would have given the industry another 18 months’ grace to continue using the containers, remained unsigned at the start of the new year. This would have been the ninth year that such a moratorium would have allowed the use of the containers, which exceed the 4,3m height restriction for containers transporting goods on South Africa’s roads. A study on the impact of the containers on roads was supposed to have been conducted to permanently allow for their use, but as yet had not been completed.…

Whistleblowing is the exposing or divulging of information on wrongdoing in an organisation. This means information on any activity deemed illegal, unethical or incorrect in private, public or third-sector organisations. The practice has a crucial role to play, and this is recognised in law. The Protection Disclosures Act (PDA), which came into effect in February 2001, protects whistleblowers in both the private and public sectors. The Act encourages a philosophy of transparency in order to fight illegal activities and create a culture of good governance. To be protected by the PDA, however, a whistleblower has to comply with several requirements. Should these not be met, he or she may be open to legal and/or disciplinary action. These requirements are as follows: • The whistleblower must act in good faith; •…

Johan van der Schyff uses Amberlink, Hy-Line and Lohmann Brown chickens in his layer operation to spread the risk if supply problems develop due to outbreaks of diseases such as avian influenza. “Continual genetic improvement has resulted in little difference between the production capacity, feed conversion or quality of eggs produced by these breeds,” he says. The chicks are vaccinated and supplied to the farm when they are 17 weeks old and at point of lay. Each layer produces between 365 and 380 eggs per year. An all-in all-out system is used, which means birds that start together on the farm are kept in the same group until they leave. This aids management, as all the birds in a group are of the same age and therefore have the same…

Ali Bacher and David Williams have proved a durable cricket writing duo. Following their books on great South African all-rounders and batsmen, they complete the trilogy with the highly readable and well-informed SOUTH AFRICA'S GREATEST BOWLERS: PAST AND PRESENT (Penguin, R260). Bacher shared some of his thoughts on cricket and more. 1. Cricket: I’ve been passionate about the game of cricket since the age of four! I know that I’m very lucky to have been able to follow my passion all my life. 2. Medicine: I originally trained and worked as a doctor, which taught me how to maintain confidentiality. That has been invaluable in sports administration. 3. Politics: Politics always needs finesse and careful handling, and it has brought me my toughest moments, such as the Gatting rebel tour…

If you were given R30 million to invest in agriculture, either in new or existing farming activities or in the agriculture value chain, how would you spend it? I think R10 million would be enough! I love cattle farming and would buy a beef herd and construct proper handling facilities. All cattle would have radio tags and I would use herdMASTER to do my recording. What is the best advice you have ever been given, and who gave it to you? Don’t sweat the small stuff! This I learned from my children. If you were given carte blanche to effect one major change in South Africa tomorrow, how would you use this power? In terms of the beef industry, I would love to see a reasonable levy of about R150…

In the article, ‘New agriculture development agency to be launched in February’ (FW, 31 January), it was incorrectly stated that the investment in the rehabilitation of the Vaalharts Irrigation Scheme was around R6,5 million. However, about R6,5 billion has actually been allocated for this project. Moreover, while the article states that funding would be allocated “according to the needs of the projects as identified by the partners responsible for the implementation of the projects”, high priority has been given to projects based mostly in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. This ‘high priority’ has been determined based on the available resources on farms that government had previously funded. • Farmer’s Weekly has a high regard for factual accuracy and welcomes reader input.…

Climate change is one of the biggest global crises humanity is facing today, as it directly affects the very sources of human livelihood: agriculture and the environment. Adverse weather is also part of normal climate variability, and together with climate change, brings major disturbances to both agriculture and the environment. With its sophisticated agriculture sector, South Africa is one the countries where the impact of climate change and poor management of climate variability could limit agricultural productivity. It is therefore crucial that all stakeholders come together and establish climate response strategies that focus on mitigating and minimising the impact on food production. Exploring drought-resistant crops, conservation farming practices, crop rotation, more efficient use of water, renewable energy farm planning, and monitoring of plant and soil changes, are some of the…

Of the 827 state-owned farms in Limpopo, only 218 are currently being leased to farmers, while the remainder are lying dormant. This was according to Jacques Smalle, DA spokesperson for agriculture and rural development. He said that the failure by the Limpopo Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to manage and expedite land reform in accordance with constitutional and statutory promises would have a “catastrophic” impact on agricultural production and food security in the province. Since 74% of state-owned land reform farms in Limpopo were lying dormant, only about R252 000 was collected in rental income over the past year. “But the greater issue is the complete lack of economic activity on that land, which could have provided jobs and food.” Smalle said that after the DA submitted a series…

The recent good rainfall across some parts of South Africa could result in an increase in the number of mosquitoes that transmit Rift Valley fever (RVF). The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development was therefore encouraging livestock owners to vaccinate their animals against the disease. “RVF is a serious viral disease that is spread through mosquitoes, causing [spontaneous] abortion and death in young cattle, sheep and goats. People coming into contact with the blood and other body fluids of infected animals can also develop RVF,” a statement by the department said. It was the responsibility of livestock owners to vaccinate their animals against the disease and prevent losses. However, the live vaccine should only be used in non-gestating animals as it could also cause spontaneous abortions. Therefore, only…

Argentinian researchers have concluded that the trade agreement between the EU and Mercosur countries will have adverse effects for the region. A study by Dr Luciana Ghiotto and Dr Javier Echaide, researchers at the National Council for Scientific and Technical Research in Buenos Aires, found that the agreement would contribute to higher greenhouse gas emissions because of deforestation, and the increased trade flows between the two blocs due to the reduction of tariffs to zero for a large number of products would also affect the climate. In June 2019, after 20 years of negotiations, the EU and the Mercosur member countries (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay) concluded a free trade agreement between the two blocs. The study, commissioned by the Greens/EFA group in the European Parliament, said: “The EU will…

South Africa has seen some improvement, at least in its government, but the challenges ahead are daunting. This was according to Nedbank economist, Isaac Matshego, who was presenting the keynote address at the 15th Vinpro Information Day, held in Cape Town recently. According to Matshego, policy uncertainty, revisions to the mining charter, and talks of nationalising the South African Reserve Bank, were some of the challenges “holding back” the country’s economy. He pointed out that the performance of state-owned enterprises, especially Eskom, was also having a significantly negative impact on South Africa’s economic growth. “Currently, we are in the grips of the longest economic downturn in the history of South Africa,” said Matshego. He expected that this year’s GDP growth rate would be about 0,7%. “With an improvement in policy,…

While it was difficult to quantify, the use of lion parts in the traditional medicine, or ‘muti’, industry was quite widespread, according to Fiona Miles, director of Four Paws Animal Welfare Foundation in South Africa. She said lion products were used in Africa for traditional ceremonies, witchcraft and rituals, as well as in traditional medicine. A pan-African survey of the trade in lion body parts showed that the parts most frequently used in these practices were the claws, fat and skin. Of all the body parts, the skin received the most mentions in the survey. Asked how the products were obtained, she said poaching and human-wildlife conflict accounted for a considerable supply. However, captive lions increasingly provided an alternative to wild populations. South Africa initially had an official export quota…

Plant and soil scientists attending the recent 2020 Combined Congress at the University of the Free State (UFS) in Bloemfontein, have heard that up to 30% of agricultural land was acidifying due to incorrect, insufficient, or inefficient liming. Fertiliser and soil management featured prominently in discussions among experts during the congress, while a symposium on soil fertility and crop nutrition was also held. Dr Pieter Haumann, CEO of the Fertilizer Association of Southern Africa (FERTASA), addressed delegates on factors affecting liming principles and practices. He said industry estimates suggested acidification was taking place in 20% to 30% of the arable soils in South Africa. Haumann said this acidification was happening particularly in the KwaZulu-Natal, Free State and North West regions, and was specifically related to farming practices. He said, however,…

Resistance to insecticides was first documented by AL Melander, an entomologist at the Washington Agricultural Experiment Station in the US, in 1914 when scale insects demonstrated resistance to an inorganic insecticide. Between 1914 and 1946, scientists recorded 11 additional cases. In the 1940s, US farmers lost 7% of their crops to pests; during the 1980s and 1990s, they lost 13%, even though more pesticides were being used. In the UK today, rats in certain areas are now able to consume up to five times as much rat poison as other rats without dying. (Read Melander’s original journal article at academic.oup.com/jee/article/7/2/167/2212207.)…

Believe it or not, there was a time in the history of agriculture when farmers were ‘price makers’. This enabled them to exercise some measure of influence over the marketing of their produce. But that all changed when farmers became ‘pricetakers’, hostages to the whims of the retail giants. The big retailers not only set standards for produce (and all the other products they sell), but dictate the price that the farmer will receive. In addition, more often than not they insist on having an extended payment period in which to reimburse their suppliers. All of this means that farmers have little or no say in the marketing of their produce, while inadvertently helping to finance the retailers. Some farmers have become so enslaved to the system that if they…

SAVOURY Doing it cowboy-style While cowboys may not be associated with fine dining, this simple stew is delicious and cost-effective. Serves four COWBOY NOSH 600g boerewors Oil 1 onion, sliced 2,5ml (½ tsp) dry mixed herbs 10ml (2 tsp) curry powder 410g (1 tin) chopped tomatoes Salt and pepper 400g (1 tin) baked beans or lentils COUSCOUS 250ml (1 cup) water 2ml turmeric 5ml (1 tsp) garlic and herbs spice 10ml (2 tsp) oil Pinch of salt and pepper 250ml (1 cup) couscous COWBOY NOSH 1. Braai the wors in a pan or on the braai until cooked. Leave to cool and cut into bite-sized pieces. 2. Heat a bit of oil in a saucepan and sauté the onion and herbs until the onion is soft and translucent. Add the…

If you suffer from indigestion, the cause may be insufficient stomach acid. Fortunately, an easy home test is available to determine this. Symptoms of indigestion include gas and bloating, especially after a meal high in meat and protein; belching after a meal; feeling excessively full after eating; an iron or B12 deficiency; chronic anaemia; chronic constipation; undigested food in the stool; weak, peeling or cracked fingernails; parasites (especially those that recur after treatment); chronic intestinal infections; and a history of multiple food allergies and intolerances. HOW TO DO THE TEST All you need to do is take ¼ teaspoon of bicarbonate of soda dissolved in half a glass of cold water first thing in the morning before eating or drinking, then time how long it takes you to belch. If…

VINEYARDS by Fred Lyon (Princeton Architectural Press, R765) Lyon, now 95, did his photography apprenticeship as a navy photographer, but has become most famous for his pictures of San Francisco, his home town. Wine was literally and figuratively never far away. He ruefully recalls in his preface how “wine sidled into my life in the days of my youth … In those lean times, a friendly gallon jug was often the practical alternative” to the whiskey for which he was also developing a taste. Soon he was chasing wine around the world, particularly in France, Hungary, Italy, Greece and Chile. Here is a glorious compilation of images of the places, vineyards and people who make wine, and a wonderful gift for any wine lover.…

The widespread rainfall across the country since the second week of January may have salvaged what could have been a disastrous agricultural season for Zimbabwe, farmers have said. However, in the Gokwe and Gweru districts in central Zimbabwe, the heavy rain caused flooding. Hwange, to the west of the country, received a record 139mm of rainfall in three hours on 18 January, which resulted in the country’s largest coal-fired power generating plant being flooded and being out of service for an entire day. “We had lost hope because it had not rained effectively since November last year,” said Shadreck Makombe, president of the Zimbabwe Commercial Farmers’ Union. “Now there is hope in many parts of the country. Crops have been salvaged, while in areas where they had permanently wilted, farmers…

ISRAEL The number of farms in Israel has declined 61% between 1981 and 2017, according to the first census of the industry undertaken by the country’s Central Bureau of Statistics in four decades. However, it did not mean that the number of farms declined, but rather that the average size of farms had increased during the period, the report said. The Israel Farmers’ Association meanwhile attributed the decline in the number of working farms to a lack of profitability. UNITED KINGDOM Plans by the National Trust in the UK to plant more than 20 million trees could be damaging for Welsh farmers, the Farmers’ Union of Wales has warned. The trust wants to create 18 000ha of new woodland across Wales, England and Northern Ireland by 2030. According to the…

Consumer price inflation increased slightly from November to December 2019, but still remained at its lowest level in nearly a decade, and was expected to remain low throughout 2020. Statistics South Africa (Stats SA) said in its latest Consumer Price Index (CPI), released in January, that in December the index had increased 0,3% from the previous month. “Annual consumer price inflation was 4% in December 2019, up from 3,6% in November 2019,” Stats SA said in its statement. The increase had largely been driven by the food and nonalcoholic beverages sector (up 3,9% year-on-year); transport (3,3%); housing and utilities (4,6%); and miscellaneous goods and services (5,4%). According to Stats SA’s historical tables, the CPI in October last year was measured at 3,7%, the lowest since the 3,4% recorded for October…

Despite recent widespread rain over large parts of the Western Cape, the drought experienced by farmers in the Central Karoo is far from over. Dean Gous, manager at Agri Central Karoo and a farmer in the area, told Farmer’s Weekly that while he received more rain in January than he did throughout the entire 2019, much more rain was still needed to alleviate the drought conditions in the area. He stressed that there were areas that did not receive any rain during the recent showers. According to Gous, it took the veld up to six weeks to recover, provided there was follow-up rain. “However, after the good rain, we experienced dry windy conditions that [further] dried out the moisture in the soil. The drought is definitely not broken and farmers…

Farmers were no longer seen as being “the fly in the environmental ointment” by world leaders and environmentalists, delegates were told at this year’s World Economic Forum recently held in Davos, Switzerland. ‘SOIL HEALTH IS THE MOST BANKABLE ASSET’ Instead, farmers were viewed as being part of the solution to mitigate climate change, while the entire food value chain has been called on to address their role in carbon emissions. Speaking to Farmer’s Weekly from Davos, Dr Theo de Jager, president of the World Farmers’ Organisation, said a balanced dialogue on the role that agriculture, and specifically meat consumption, played in climate change, had emerged at this year’s forum, in contrast to the unscientific, populist rhetoric heard last year. “There is still an anti-meat consumption movement going on, but it…

A total of 11 570 bales were on offer at 16th sale of the 2019/2020 wool season, held in Port Elizabeth, of which 96,5% was sold. The market closed 1,1% or 199 points down at R175,44/kg (clean). The performance was encouraging, although most micron categories traded lower, while there was better competition for the finer micron, longer wools. Most of the wool consisted of good-length, fine micron wools, according to Cape Wools. The offer consisted mostly of good-quality and medium-length wool types, attracting satisfactory interest from buyers, while stronger types were limited in quantity. Sustainable certified lots performed well, said OVK operations manager, Heinrich Victor. The largest decrease of 3,5% was experienced in the 21,5-micron segment. The highest price of R142,10/kg at the OVK auction was achieved for a one-bale…

From the moment our children are born, we start educating them. We hang a mobile over the cot, bring out picture books as soon as they respond, give them puzzles, toys and gimmicks to play with, and help and encourage them throughout their schooling and beyond. Nurturing one’s children is as basic a human instinct as breathing, with parents making colossal sacrifices for the sake of their children’s future. Few joys can compare with seeing our children do well, and amongst the most satisfying of all is working side-by-side with them in the family business, and seeing them take the company to new heights. But this doesn’t happen automatically; it needs planning! SUCCESSION PLANNING: THE DO’S AND DON’TS Let’s take a look at three real-life farming families (the names have…

Johan van der Schyff (36) had always wanted to farm, and needed little invitation to join his father, Johan Sr, on the family farm after completing school. “I grew up on a maize and layer farm near Ventersdorp, but we moved to Plettenberg Bay in 1994 after my father had to sell the farm for health reasons. He had over 40 years’ experience, so I knew that having him as my mentor would be my best bet on becoming a successful farmer,” Van der Schyff recalls. Johan Sr bought a smallholding near Plettenberg Bay as a property investment after moving there, but Van der Schyff’s desire to farm presented an opportunity to use the land more lucratively. The father-and-son team therefore started using all their free time to develop and…

SMALLER, LESS POWERFUL TRACTORS CAN NOW OPERATE AN AUGER MIXER WAGON More than 40 000 people and 700 exhibitors, showing the latest farming machinery, equipment and technology, attended the 2020 LAMMA Show, which took place in Birmingham in the UK on 7 and 8 January. Among the displays were the winners of this year’s LAMMA Innovation Awards. The innovation awards, which are open to all exhibitors, take into account design innovation, practical impact on the farming industry, product sustainability, environmental impact, and safety features. In the category for Livestock Innovation, one of six categories, the McVeigh Parker Triple X fencing system, won gold, while Kuhn’s Intellimix feeder wagon transmission garnered silver. COST-EFFECTIVE FENCING What appealed most to the LAMMA judges about the Triple X fencing system was the value for…

Dear Jonno, We have land in a rural area near Utrecht, and are planning to build our house there. I’ve drawn a sketch of the home we would like to have. Please could you use it to design a house that we would be able to build at reasonable cost? Kind regards, Meshack Dear Meshack, Thank you for our phone conversation. It gave me a better idea of the materials and styling you want. The room sizes should be adequate. The roof is of IBR profile steel sheeting and the walls of concrete block-work. The passageway next to the bedrooms is very wide, so I’ve included cupboards, which are always useful. I’ve converted the two open spaces alongside the interconnecting passageway into a backyard outside the kitchen, and an enclosed…

Plants, like all organisms, release volatile organic compounds (VOCs). But the type and concentration of these change when the plant is diseased, according to Qingshan Wei, an assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at North Carolina State University in the US. Wei is part of a team that has developed technology which enables farmers to identify plant diseases in the field. A handheld sensor plugs into a smartphone and samples a plant’s VOCs. UNIQUE SIGNATURE PROFILE “Each disease has its own signature profile of VOCs,” explains Wei. “By measuring the type and concentration of VOCs released by the plant, you can determine if a plant is diseased, and if it is, which disease it has. “Current disease identification techniques rely on molecular assays, which is a time-consuming process that…