Table of contents for 17 June 2016 in Farmer's Weekly

It was the Greek philosopher, Plato, who first said “necessity is the mother of invention”, but Albert Einstein later famously changed the phrase slightly to “necessity is the mother of all invention”. Some of the greatest tales of invention and innovation relate the stories of people who found themselves in such desperate situations that the only options left were giving up or finding a completely new solution to the problem at hand. Breakthroughs don’t happen when we are content and comfortable. South Africa is not in a comfortable place at the moment. There are many uncertainties and, for farmers, the drought has multiplied these many times over. We find ourselves in a liminal space, and we should not let the opportunity to find our way through the chaos and uncertainty…

In the article titled ‘African small-scale farmers struggle to access finance’ (FW, 10 June), the quote, “It’s said by many that farmers are amongst the poorest and the hungriest, and are also the most malnourished. It’s a serious situation [as] those in [the] business of producing food are starving. If you cannot feed yourself, how can you feed others?”, was inadvertently attributed to Paul Zakariya, executive director of the Zimbabwe Farmers’ Union, instead of the CEO of SACAU, Ismael Sunga. In the same article it was incorrectly stated that Beauty Manake was a commercial farmer from Swaziland; she is in fact from Botswana. • Farmer’s Weekly has a high regard for factual accuracy and welcomes reader input.…

Greater state support for South Africa’s emerging red meat producers may soon be forthcoming. The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) recently committed itself to finding ways to support the National Emergent Red Meat Producers’ Organisation’s (Nerpo) Livestock Syndicate Scheme (LSS). The department’s recent announcement follows a Nerpo statement that berated both DAFF and the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform (DRDLR) for alledgedly failing to support the LSS since its first discussion at the Nerpo annual general meeting in 2014. Aggrey Mahanjana, Nerpo’s group managing director, said that the LSS was intended to help transform South Africa’s red meat industry and its value chain by giving black farmers more ownership and control of these production aspects. “The [LSS] is a historic programme that aims to achieve what…

A new mandarin cultivar, the Samba, is set to be released to South African citrus growers by XLnT Citrus within the next few weeks. According to Dr Graham Barry, owner of XLnT, the cultivar’s fruit characteristics and flavour profile lent itself well to export markets. “The Samba Mandarin originated from an open-pollinated seedling of a mandarin, possibly with a Clementine and a tangelo as parents,” Barry told Farmer’s Weekly. What made it different from other mandarins was the timing of maturation, as the Samba matured at an important time in the citrus calendar, between Clementines and late mandarins. “It has exceptional flavour, a good shipping ability and it can withstand cold-sterilisation,” said Barry. “Furthermore, it has great colour, doesn’t require de-greening, and peels more easily than the Nova mandarin.” The…

According to Minister of Environmental Affairs, Edna Molina, predation had a serious impact on socio-economic development in South Africa. During the minister’s address at the National Wool Growers’ Association’s (NWGA) congress in Port Elizabeth, Alf Wills, deputy director-general of the department, who delivered the address on Molina’s behalf, said that predation had resulted in smallstock farmers suffering a combined loss of around R2 billion a year. He said that the department would endeavour to bring the rate of predation down significantly, as the increasing rate was threatening production. He added that predation management was fragmented and uncoordinated because of a shortage of research that would make it easier to combat the threat successfully. “Despite continual efforts, there is no real success,” Wills said, adding that government was planning to introduce…

According to the Organisation for Economic Co-ordination and Development’s (OECD) Environmental Outlook to 2050, global water demand was projected to increase by 55% due to increased demand from the manufacturing sector, thermal electricity generation, and domestic use. Addressing delegates at the Agbiz Congress on water security and governance in South Africa, Mike Muller, visiting professor at the University of the Witwatersrand’s School of Governance, said that in future the world would use trade as a way to manage water constraints. He said that countries would have to regulate food trade in terms of the amount of water needed to produce food, a concept known as virtual water trade. This referred to the ‘hidden’ flow of water used to produce a particular commodity if this commodity was traded from one country…

Prices for smaller plains game and colour variant game decreased year-on-year, while higher value game prices increased. This was according to Absa Agribusiness’ game price index, compiled in conjunction with North-West University. Julie Hayward, agricultural economist at Absa AgriBusiness, said that lower prices for breeding stock could result in a decrease in prices for hunted game, but she did not foresee a drastic drop. The index also indicated that the value of larger and higher-value game animals such as buffalo, roan antelope and sable antelope (the males in each case) had increased. “There’s a bit more stability, especially in buffalo [prices]. It’s seen as a safer investment. The exchange rate also benefited prices,” she said. Despite the decline in prices for colour-variant game animals, Hayward said that farmers breeding split…

Greater investment in South Africa’s national fresh produce markets is needed if these facilities are to remain a preferred sales and marketing platform for farmers. This was the message of Jaco Oosthuizen, group managing director of RSA Market Agents, who described the state of SA markets as woeful. “Our markets are old and are not keeping up with technology,” he said. Farmers invested millions of rands in technology to produce high-quality produce, and markets needed to provide top-end facilities where farmers could sell their produce. Inadequate investment in national markets would create opportunities for private entrepreneurs to establish modern facilities for farmers. According to a University of Pretoria report, the role of fresh produce markets in South Africa had changed. A substantial increase in commercialisation and privatisation had resulted in…

NO BUSINESS MANAGER HAS EVER BECOME GREAT WITHOUT MAKING SACRIFICES Barbara Sahakian, a professor of neuro-psychology at Cambridge University, assembled two groups of business people in their early 50s. One consisted of true, hard-bitten entrepreneurs who had started and built at least two new businesses in their time. The other group comprised successful career managers who had served as steady corporate employees. Sahakian gave the groups two psychological tests. One measured decision-making involving a cool, calm logical selection of alternatives, where feelings played little role. The second measured decision-making in the face of significant risk, where emotions were a far more significant factor. Both groups scored similarly in logical decision-making, but when it came to decisions involving emotion, the results could not have been more different. The entrepreneurs went for…

Peter and Christine Watt have been breeding Percherons since 2002, and there are currently 21 of these heavy draught horses on their farm, with 35 horses in total. According to Christine, it is difficult to make money keeping horses, as they are expensive to feed and maintain. “It’s lunatic passion that drives us, and vet bills alone can be crippling,” she says. Tourist accommodation, Percheron cart rides and an on-site restaurant supplement the farm’s income. Outeniqua Moon Percheron is a stud herd registered with the Percheron Horse Breeders’ Society of Namibia. Well-bred Percherons must be big, says Christine. The minimum standard for the society is 15,3 hands high (hh), or 1,6m, for mares and 16hh (1,63m) for stallions. Most of the Percherons on the Watts’ farm are considerably bigger than…

The primary illnesses that Ralph Spence and Richard Ndoko encounter are tick-related. Ralph explains that while communal dipping occurs regularly, it is often ineffective. “While farmers dip their cattle every week, the dips are often not properly managed. Farmers seldom take samples after dipping or actively apply dip when it’s needed, so the dips can be ineffective,” he explains. With growing populations in these rural areas, grazing has become a problem in winter. To combat this, the programme supplies licks to supplement the animals’ meagre diets during this time. As a means of alleviating the nutritional challenges during the dry winter period, Ralph encourages smallholders to plant feed. Due to inadequate fencing, however, these crops are often quickly consumed by both domesticated and wild animals.…

The debate over food prices continues to hold centre stage. This is understandable, given that poor families in South Africa spend roughly a third of their household incomes on food, according to Statistics SA. In her 6 May editorial, Farmer’s Weekly editor, Denene Erasmus, writes that food should not be cheap but affordable. ‘Cheap’ implies undesirables such as exploitative production practices, while ‘affordable’ takes into account the real value of food produced with care and at great expense from scarce resources. Denene quotes agriculture minister Senzeni Zokwana as saying that the “situation should not be unduly exploited for maximum profits”. We all agree, I’m sure. This is where the fresh produce commission markets come into their own, because they reflect the daily price of fruit and veg based on supply…

OVERGROWN TOES CAN MAKE A WELL-CONFORMED HORSE APPEAR SICKLE HOCKED The tarsus (hock) of a horse is the joint between the tibia and the metatarsal (cannon) bone in the hind leg. If you look at a horse from the side, the point of the hock and the cannon bone should be in a straight line with the point of the hip. If a horse has a sickle hock, the point of the hock is in line with the hip, but the cannon bone is angled so that the hoof is too far forward. In other words, the hind leg is slightly curved, like a sickle. While true sickle hocks are caused by the bones in the hock being aligned at an acute angle, a long, sloped pastern or long toes…

Dear Jonno We want to build a home in the Mpumalanga Lowveld, and would like your creative input. We want something that is ‘mod’ but rustic. The design must also allow for ease of construction, as we want to build in stages as finances permit. The house must have two en suite bedrooms, with a possible third bedroom for visitors. We would like an open-plan living/ kitchen area, with the living area and bedrooms facing north. If possible, the size of the house should be kept under 180m², with a good-sized veranda to extend our outdoor living experience. The land is level and is enclosed by bushland, and we are aiming to go completely off-grid. Regards Lynda and Jonathan Dear Lynda and Jonathan, Thank you for the unusual ‘mod-rustic’ home…

THE BIG FIX by Ray Hartley (Jonathan Ball, R240) Most South Africans regard the hosting of the 2010 FIFA World Cup as one of the country’s golden achievements. But, says Hartley, this is “one of the grandest of illusions”. While not seeking to demolish the good memories, he assesses the price that was paid for them. He also suggests that the SA Football Association’s own match-fixing scandals created a climate in which corrupt methods of securing 2010 World Cup hosting were condoned. Hartley acknowledges the investigations of Mzilikazi wa Afrika and Rob Rose, and brings his own masterly political sense and storytelling expertise to bear on a jaw-dropping sports story that is as readable as it is thought-provoking. MOSKVA by Jack Grimwood (Michael Joseph, R305) Moscow…

“As an astronomer, I am mindful that Earth is 45 million centuries old and that this century is the first when one species can determine the fate of the biosphere. Down the millennia, people have been vulnerable to natural threats such as earthquakes and volcanoes. But the annual probability of these disasters has not changed much since the time of the Neanderthals (although today, admittedly, the economic consequences have become far greater). We are now deep into the ‘Anthropocene’, the new period in which human activities have a global impact on Earth’s ecosystems. The pressures of a growing human population and economy on land and water are already high. And unlike the familiar natural threats such as earthquakes, the risks of climate change are growing, and will continue to increase.…

Meat inspection in Australia has come under fire from the Australian Beef Association (ABA), which is calling for a complete revision of meat grading processes. Global Meat News reported that farmers were not receiving fair compensation because meat grading was biased. David Byard, executive officer of ABA, said that processors encouraged meat graders to downgrade carcasses to reduce payment to farmers. ABA suggested that closed circuit television cameras be installed in abattoirs to monitor grading processes. The organisation also wanted the government to enact laws to ensure that all graders were independent. South African beef producers also struggled with grading inconsistencies, according to Dr Pieter de Kock, president of the Afrikaner Cattle Breeders’ Society of SA. “Grading is also a problem for us. If we don’t comply with the system,…

The Agbiz office bearers for 2016-2018 were elected at a members’ meeting held at the recent Agricultural Business Chamber’s (Agbiz) congress. Re-elected as chairperson, deputy chairperson and second deputy chairperson are Schalk Pienaar, Danie Marias (MD of NWK Limited) and Dr Langa Simela (business development manager at ABSA AgriBusiness) respectively. Other members of the Agbiz executive committee are Sean Walsh (MD of Kaap Agri and Francois Strydom (MD of Senwes). Dr John Purchase, CEO of Agbiz, serves on the committee as an ex officio member.…

South Africa’s Subtropical Growers’ Association (Subtrop) held its first Transformation Summit in Tzaneen on 17 May. According to Derek Donkin, CEO of the association, the summit aimed to expose role players in the private commercial agriculture sector, emerging farmers, and government to various aspects of transformation in the industry so that they could “be aware of what the other parties are doing”. Donkin said that there were currently 270 emerging farmers registered as Subtrop members. Of these, 60 farmed avocados, 30 farmed litchis, 110 farmed macadamias, and 70 farmed mangoes. The association was allocating R2 million per year to its transformation projects, and this was over and above the money that individual farmers and other subtropical commodity organisations had been spending on transformation. Despite this, speakers and delegates at the…

Five years since the launch of a government-funded chicory-growing project in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands, only five of the targeted 15ha of this crop were being grown by developing farmer cooperatives, according to Lelethu Manentsa, spokesperson for the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (KZN DARD). It had been envisaged that these chicory farming cooperatives in KZN’s Weenen area would produce a steady supply of the product for Nestlé SA’s recently expanded coffee-manufacturing plant in nearby Estcourt. Manentsa said that DARD had been a funder of the chicory-growing initiative, and that chicory was introduced to emerging farmers as “a rotational crop to fit into [their] present vegetable crop production”. “Through research, it was realised that there was huge potential for the commodity in the uThukela District. This would give an…

‘Tilapia’ is a general term for the cichlids of several genera from the family Cichlidae, commonly known as ‘bream’ or ‘kurper’. There are many species, found in a wide variety of habitats across Africa. Oreochromis is the mouth-brooding genus, while Tilapia are the substrate spawners. Many people are familiar with the Mozambique tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus), also known as the blue kurper or ‘mossie’. This is the common and widespread tilapia found in the Lowveld, occurring naturally from Limpopo, down the eastern side of the country to the Eastern Cape. It has a close relative, the black tilapia (O. placidus), which is often mistaken for the blue kurper. The black tilapia is found only in the north-eastern coastal regions of KwaZulu-Natal, Mkuze, Mgobezeleni Lake, and north into Mozambique as far as…

Ralph Spence was raised in Barkly East and matriculated at Queen’s College. He attended the University of Natal, studying toward a bachelor’s degree in agriculture. After two years (1977-1978), he discontinued his studies, went to work and then attended Cedara Agricultural College. Here, he completed a two-year diploma in agriculture. He worked as a farm manager at an abattoir in Elliot and then as a veterinary medical representative before opening a business in Queenstown. “I eventually had a wool, hide and skin business in Queenstown for a while,” says Ralph. “But I’ve been in [the former Transkei] since 2004, dealing with livestock mostly.” Ralph became involved with the Donald Woods Foundation (DWF) two years ago, after meeting Donald Woods’s son Dillon, chief executive of the DWF. With the help of…

Here is a brief summary of regulations and best management practices to prevent soil erosion outlined in the Conservation of Agricultural Resources Act (CARA): • If you intend transforming or removing more than 100ha of vegetation, you must have a full environmental impact assessment carried out. • You must obtain authorisation from the department of agriculture if you wish to: cultivate ‘virgin land’ (land which has at no time during the preceding 10 years been cultivated); transform (such as brush-cutting or removing the vegetation entirely) more than 5ha; dredge, excavate, infill, move or remove soil, sand or rock exceeding 5m³ from a river, tidal lagoon, tidal river, lake, in-stream dam, floodplain or wetland; or construct/upgrade any dam, levee or weir. • Unless you have written authority, you may not cultivate…

Bertus Goosen is a veteran of the Boerepatente Kompetisie and always scores a few wins, but this year he and his family had a field day, with a win or place in many of the classes. Here is a selection of the entries that caught my eye: 1 The easy way to load a trailer In this Goosen winner, the winch, powered by the towing vehicle’s electrics, lifts the load on a swivelling gantry onto the trailer. (First in Class A1: Implements and agricultural equipment.) 2 Solar-powered golf cart This is not the first time that Bertus has submitted a solar-powered device. Here, a roof-mounted solar panel charges the batteries. (First in Class C2: Modified household or gardening equipment.) 3 Slangbos roller Slangbos (Seriphium plumosum) can…

VISIT DAD AND THANK HIM FOR ALL HE HAS DONE FOR YOU The Fifth Commandment is: “Honour your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land.” As I’ve pointed out before, this is the first commandment with a promise added to it. In the busy-ness of your working day, it’s all too easy to forget your father, especially if he has retired and still lives on the farm with you. Take time to visit him, and thank him for what he has given you. God expects you to. You might say that you’ve had to work for everything you’ve got; let me remind you that it’s a privilege and an honour to take over the farm from your father. A father is not compelled to…

One of Facebook’s most valuable features is ‘groups’ – people with similar interests can communicate with each other at any time, regardless of where they are. To create a Facebook group, follow these simple steps: • From your home page, go to the ‘Groups’ section on the left side menu and click ‘Create Group’. • Next, click ‘Create New Group’ at the top of the page. A window will appear. Insert the group’s name, add members, and select the privacy settings for your group. • When you’re finished, click ‘Create’ and you’ll be taken to the group. To get started, click the top right of the screen and select ‘Edit Group Settings’. Add a group description, set a group email address, add a group picture and choose the type of…

CONFERENCES & EXPOS 19 TO 23 JUNE International Food and Agribusiness Management Association’s 26th Annual World Conference, Denmark. Visit www.ifama.org. 21 TO 23 JUNE Agri Food Expo, Johannesburg. Email admin@exhibitionsafrica.com, or visit www.expoza.all.biz/ agri-food-expo. 21 TO 23 JUNE AVI Africa 2016, Emperor's Palace, Johannesburg. Visit www.sapoultry.co.za. 27 TO 29 JUNE Agriculture and Horticulture International Conference, Cape Town. Visit agriculture-horticulture.conferenceseries.com agriculture-horticulture.conferenceseries.com. 24 TO 28 AUGUST The Jacaranda Agricultural Show, Pretoria. Phone 012 327 1487 or visit www.jacarandashow.co.za. 20 TO 22 SEPTEMBER The Silo Expo, Lesotho National Wool and Mohair Growers Association Convention Centre, Lesotho. Email expo@thesilo.co.ls or visit www.thesilo.co.ls. COURSES & TRAINING 18 JUNE Distillique's Whiskey and Moonshine, Hennopspark, Centurion. Phone Hendré Barnard on 021 653 6871, or visit www.distillique.co.za. 20 TO 22 JUNE Artificial Insemination, Krugersdorp. Phone Di Rothman on…

The wool market traded 1,4% lower this week, and the Merino indicator decreased by 225 points to close at R160,81 (clean). Buyers attributed this correction to the market being perceived as expensive. Cape Wools, however, reported that over the past month of trade there had been a consistently strong demand for medium-length wool, and excellent competition for longer and better quality wools. “As has become customary now, the market stood its ground on the penultimate auction of the season, despite the slightly stronger rand/USD exchange rate,” CMW’s James de Jager said. “Medium and long wool of 18 microns [µm] and finer, and 22µm wool, traded at unchanged price levels from the previous auction, but wool of 19µm to 21µm shed 1,5%. The price for the limited offering of 22µm and…

China is selling off its cotton reserves, a move that may positively influence global prices. This is according to Koot Louw, Cotton SA secretary. Louw said that, historically, the high-volume total stock in storage in China, added to supply from producers, had flooded the market, pushing prices down. In the past, China had imported large volumes of cotton and kept the market alive. China began selling cotton from its national reserve last month. To date, approximately 450 000t have been sold, reducing reserves to 10,6 million tons, according to Cotton SA’s 5th crop estimate report for the 2015/2016 season. As Chinese reserves declined, prices could improve, Louw said. “We produce some of the best cotton in the world, but this doesn’t mean that with China currently lacking quality cotton, they’ll…

 It is of the utmost importance that wool production in South Africa be dramatically increased to meet growing demand. This is according to Guillau du Toit, chairperson of the National Woolgrowers’ Association (NWGA). ‘WITH THE WORLDWIDE DECREASE IN PRODUCTION, WE RUN THE RISK OF BEING PRICED OUT OF THE MARKET’ Speaking at the NWGA’s 87th annual congress in Port Elizabeth, Du Toit said that wool fibre had dropped to only 1,3% of the market share of clothing wool textile fibres. “What will happen if there is a further drop in wool production? With the worldwide decrease in production, we run the risk of being priced out of the market,” he said. “Therefore, this is not only the task of the NWGA, but a widespread effort of all role players in…

THE SARB EXPECTS INFLATION TO REACH 6,7% Lesetja Kganyago, the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) governor, believes that South Africa’s short-term prospects are not encouraging. Kganyago was the keynote speaker at the Agbiz conference held in Somerset West recently. The theme for this year’s congress was ‘Fit for the Future’. “The agriculture, forestry and fisheries sector contracted in every quarter of last year, losing 8,4% of its total value over the course of 2015,” said Kganyago. He added that the sector’s contraction had also affected associated sectors, such as manufacturing (via agroprocessing), and banks and insurance companies that were heavily invested in the agricultural sector. Kganyago said that South Africa was currently experiencing weak economic activity. “Growth has declined since 2011, while underlying inflation has increased. At the same time,…

Food security in Africa cannot improve unless more young people become farmers and traditional perceptions of land ownership change to accommodate a new generation of food producers. Speaking at the 2016 Autumn International Scientific Conference on Food Safety and Security, project management specialist, Dr Benias Mapepeta, said that Africa’s youth needed to assist in reducing food insecurity, but they lacked the skills and confidence to do so. “We can only be food-secure in Africa if we realise that we are falling behind. Traditionally, land ownership and control have been in the hands of aging farmers or the state. This leaves little room for young farmers to enter the sector,” Mapepeta said. He added that 90% of South Africa’s farmers were over the age of 45 and resistant to change and…

Genetically modified soya beans have become so successful that they now occupy 80% of the area planted to soya beans. Yet some niche markets request conventional soya beans. Farmers who wish to grow conventional soya bean face the dominance of countries whose GM adoption is overwhelming.GM crops account for 94% of the total area planted to soya beans in the US, 93% in Brazil, 100% in Argentina, 95% in Paraguay, 100% in Uruguay, and 95% in South Africa. Benefits of GM include broad spectrum weed-specific herbicides and facilitation of no-till conservation agriculture, which allows crop rotation and two crops per season. All of this helps to reduce herbicide carry-over, lowers costs, and lessens the use of mechanical equipment. GM’s benefits and export dominance make it difficult for newcomer farmers, seed…

WOOD WASTE THAT WOULD OTHERWISE BE BURNT IS USED TO POWER THE MILL The introduction of regular load-shedding in South Africa a few years ago was a severe blow to the country’s economy. One of the numerous businesses to suffer was the Johnson family’s sawmilling business in KwaZulu-Natal’s Kamberg Valley. The company, Plank-It, began haemorrhaging money due to lost production and an unproductive labour force, as electrical sawmilling machinery stood idle for days on end. However, this was just the motivation that sawmiller, farmer and mechanical engineer Patrick Johnson needed to find a cost-effective and sustainable solution to the problem. “Our sawmill generates about 4t of offcuts and other wood waste per day. Previously, when the waste pile became too big we’d simply burn it. But with the effects of…

AVOCADOS (SA Avocado Growers’ Association – SAAGA) One of the speakers at the annual SAAGA Research Symposium earlier this year, Prof Michiel Laker, Emeritus Professor of Soil Science, University of Pretoria, addressed a crucial issue for SA agriculture: water usage. The recent drought that has ravaged many parts of the country has created an awareness among the general public of the fact that South Africa is a water-scarce country. In his address titled, ‘Irrigation in South Africa in perspective’, Laker brought a much-needed balance to the debate. DISPELLING MYTHS According to him, the commonly held belief that irrigated agriculture used about 60% of South Africa’s available surface water resources, or even that it used about 60% of all South Africa’s water, was a gross misrepresentation of what was stated in…

Innovative Robertson farmer, Louis Loubser, is an avid inventor who has devised a number of implements to improve production efficiency since he started farming almost 10 years ago. These include a device with movable excavators that can dig up to 1 360 planting holes per hour, and a pole planter that allows workers to do the job in less than a quarter of the time it normally takes. However, it is his latest invention, the Tree Hog, that has caused the most stir in the industry. “I feel as if I am in a daze,” he says. “Major retailers are phoning me from overseas to become part of the commercialisation of the project. They’re calling it the ‘irrigation breakthrough of the decade’ because it enhances irrigation efficiency – it reduces…

HARDENING BY WITHHOLDING WATER IS OFTEN IMPRACTICAL AHighveld farmer I knew once desperately needed seedlings and turned to a supplier in another region. I still recall his shock when the consignment arrived: the seedlings were far larger and harder than he was used to. He asked me whether they were any good, and I assured him there was nothing wrong with them. They had simply been grown in a subtropical climate and had to be bigger in order to survive in this harsher environment. Seedlings grown on the Highveld for Highveld conditions tend to look considerably different. There is often confusion over what comprises a ‘good’ seedling. Survival is the first priority, and a fast getaway is the second. The rule of thumb is to have a seedling as soft…

EVEN IF YOU DON’T SUBSCRIBE TO EYE SIGN THEORY, IT’S WELL KNOWN THAT EYES ARE GOOD HEALTH INDICATORS Briefly, eye sign theory holds that the appearance or structure of a pigeon’s eye can help to determine if the bird will be a superior racer or breeder. The concept has caused heated debate in the sport, but I believe that more research needs to be done into the theory. What complicates matters, especially for newcomers to the sport, is that there are at least two schools of thought about eye sign. In about 1948, SW Bishop developed a chart encapsulating what he believed to be the eye signs to look for. The pupil is the first circle of the eye, followed by the circle of adaption and then the circle of…

To make a loaf of ginger and honey cake, you will need: 150g butter 125g honey 50g golden syrup 50g brown sugar 2 eggs 100g self-raising flour 50g rye flour ½ teaspoon baking powder 10cm whole ginger root ½ teaspoon ground allspice First, some theory: baking demands precision in measurement. And in most cases, mass provides greater accuracy in the kitchen than volume does. Very small quantities, such as baking powder and ground allspice, are workable in fractions of teaspoons, while eggs remain eggs and ginger root remains ginger root. Not exact measurements, but ones that retain a gentle link with tradition. We start with the ginger root. Peel this and then grate the remainder. Wrap the grated ginger in a square of clean muslin and squeeze out the ginger…

Here’s good news for people with blood type O: you can have that extra helping of red meat or seafood! Your body has a high level of stomach acid that digests protein and fat. Unfortunately, there is a downside to the Type O digestive system: it does not react well with sugar, wheat and most other grains. And if you neglect exercise and eat the wrong foods, you may become prone to obesity, thyroid disorders and gastric or digestive upsets. Wheat may also be a problem for you, causing post-nasal drip, hay fever, asthma or snoring. More seriously, it can result in leaky gut, leading to lupus, rheumatoid arthritis and other chronic diseases. As a result of all this, Type Os should avoid foods containing wheat flour: regular bread, pasta,…

The Boran has several features that attracted the Bassons of the Adelson Boran stud to these highly productive animals. The first was the breed’s natural propensity for adapting to extreme environments and its hardiness with regard to illness, parasites and droughts. The second was its fertility. And the third was its excellent temperament. “They’re very docile animals and easy to farm,” explains Lizette Basson. QUALITY GENETICS “We believe that an impressive herd must be bred from quality animals. Great care is taken in our selection to make sure we meet the expectations of our clients,” adds Lizette. The original three main sire lines used were 2459, 2738, 3094, and the female herd is structured on 16 maternal lines. The Bassons bought their first in-calf SP heifers in 2003 from the…