Table of contents for 2 November 2018 in Farmer's Weekly

Let’s be honest, living in South Africa can be really depressing, despite our many sunny days, beautiful scenery and generally long-suffering disposition. As a country, we’re placed too high on too many miserable rankings, including unemployment, crime, corruption, and economic inequality. We pay more taxes than most people in the world and receive disgracefully poor services in return. And I hear our sports teams have not been doing so well lately. So how can we remain optimistic, and why does it matter? We have entered ‘awards season’ and at most of the functions I have attended, business and farming leaders have urged South Africa’s top-performing farmers to be a force for hope in their communities. At the Young Farmer and New Harvest Farmer of the Year awards ceremony, Agri SA…

Sinethemba Mafanya, the manager of the Diageo Empowerment Trust SA, writes that sorghum has a lot going for it: it is climate-smart and highly nutritious, and South African farmers already have the knowhow to cultivate it. He believes that with adequate investment, sorghum cultivation could help solve unemployment in Africa. As world populations grow, we hear more about the potential value of Africa’s huge reserves of arable land, estimated to account for 60% of the global total. In a world rapidly running out of farming land, Africa could build its economies on supplying a chunk of the world’s food. Our agricultural potential is as yet unrealised: we still have the lowest cereal yields in the world, and we imported basic grains worth US$30 billion (R423 billion) in 2011, according to…

Many role players across the agricultural sector agree that South Africa needs both large and small farmers. However, many black farmers fall in the category of smallholders and often do not have access to land. Even in cases where some do have access, the land is often not equipped with adequate resources such as irrigation and other necessary infrastructure needed to unlock scale benefits for commercial operations. Access to, and ownership of, land for economic activity is an essential component of economic development. It is thus important to reflect on the history of black farming, especially in the context of the current land debate in the country. I would like to highlight some of the claims I made in my master’s thesis titled ‘Key factors influencing smallholder market participation in…

Wineries needed to restructure their marketing campaigns to target millennials and the black middle class, according to Katlego Ditlhokwe, a strategic planner at brand communications group Joe Public. Speaking at the recent Business of Wine and Tourism Conference, Ditlhokwe said many in the black community had not grown up with a wine-drinking culture and felt overwhelmed when confronted with wine choices. “The wine industry is highly intimidating. There are too many rules and too much variety. You not only need to know at what temperature the wine should be served, in which glasses and with what food, but also how to pronounce the name if you want to tell your friends about it,” he said. To target this market, wineries needed to understand its culture and humour, and speak “the…

CropLife SA has appointed new members to its management team to spearhead its 2021 vision of ensuring sustainable food production, food security and public health in South Africa, according to new CEO Rodney Bell. “This vision is based on the pillars of stewardship; government liaison, legislation and compliance; communication and brand building; as well as education, training and skills development.” CropLife SA represents manufacturers, suppliers and distributors of sustainable crop protection and public health solutions in the agricultural, public health and consumer sectors. The team was joined by Dr Gerhard Verdoorn (operations and stewardship manager), Fikile Nzuza (government and regulatory liaison), Elriza Theron (marketing and communications manager), and Chana-Lee White as the agri-intel manager.…

The often overlooked problem of plant parasitic nematodes is having an adverse impact on food security in Africa. This was according to Dr Nancy Ntidi, nematologist at the Agricultural Research Council’s (ARC) Grain Crops Institute in Potchefstroom. She said the impact of the nematodes on leafy vegetables on the continent was of particular concern. “These vegetables are an important source of micronutrients and bioactive compounds. Despite the adaption of the vegetables to hot and dry climatic conditions, such crops are prone to infection by various diseases and pests, incuding plant-parasitic nematodes.” According to Ntidi, plant-parasitic nematodes were microscopic worms which caused significant plant damage that could result in the total destruction of plant material. These pests constituted some of the most abundant on Earth and were adapted to survive in…

BURKINO FASO Wastewater from three canals used in urban agriculture in the capital city of Burkino Faso, Ouagadougou, has been found to have a high level of virulent human pathogens. According to Prof Laura Piddock of the University of Birmingham’s Institute of Microbiology and Infection in the UK, who led a team that tested wastewater samples in the city, the canals also appeared to be a ‘hot spot’ for antibiotic-resistant bacteria. UNITED STATES According to scientists from the University of California in the US, global warming will have another unexpected result: a disruption to the world’s beer supply. Droughts and heatwaves, exacerbated by global warming, will lead to sharp declines in crop yields of barley, the main ingredient in beer, said Steven Davis, associate professor of Earth system science at…

With the World Health Organization (WHO) reporting that an average of 91 million Africans fall ill and 137 000 die annually as a result of food-borne diseases, the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) has welcomed the recent launch of the African Food Safety Index. According to a statement issued by the Netherlands-based Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation, the index would “provide the evidence necessary for African countries to prioritise food safety, reduce food-borne illnesses, and improve trade and income”. The centre would be partnering with the African Union Commission and the WHO to implement the index. The statement added that in addition to health concerns, food safety had become an important precondition for countries to access global food markets. “If smallholder farmers cannot connect to expanded…

The South African beef industry is not yet adopting artificial insemination (AI) to the same extent as beef producers elsewhere in the world. According to Prof Edward Webb of the University of Pretoria, only 7% to 8% of semen purchased for AI was destined for the beef industry, compared with about 92% purchased by dairy producers. He was speaking at the 10th annual Aldam Stockman School near Winburg in the Free State. By comparison, there had been a 730% increase in semen sales to the beef industry in Brazil between 1995 and 2014, with most of the growth taking place over the past seven years, according to Prof Cliff Lamb of Texas A&M University in the US. He said that about 15 million Brazilian beef cattle were being inseminated every…

For many South Africans, this might seem like one of the most difficult times to be alive, given the major uncertainty in many areas of life, but South Africans should know that a great number of the challenges they are facing are not unique to this country. This was according to Calvyn Hamman, Toyota SA Motors senior vice president of sales and marketing, speaking at the awards ceremony of the Agri SA and Toyota Young Farmer of the Year and New Harvest Farmer of the Year, held in Kempton Park recently. Volatility and uncertainty brought about by climate change, corruption and politics were affecting many nations around the world. However, said Hamman, the added burden of having to endure threats to their security as well as their right to own…

There is no general retirement age in South Africa. An employee’s retirement age is determined by the employer and agreed to by the employee. This retirement age must be placed in writing in the employment contract to avoid a case of unfair dismissal or automatically unfair dismissal when the employment contract is terminated at the end of the month in which an employee reaches the agreed-upon retirement age. Often, an employee is still mentally and physically capable of conducting the duties required by the position after reaching the agreed-upon retirement age. Nonetheless, the employee’s permanent employment contract must still be terminated. Should both parties decide to continue the employment relationship, they can enter into a fixed-term employment contract. Employers should take note that if the permanent employment contract is not…

The young bull is fresh off the veld but its coat shimmers in the sunlight. Smaller-framed but ticking all the right boxes in terms of performance potential, it puts on a show for the spectators. As the bull and the crowd size each other up, its breeder, Justin Stirk, shares his insights about the animal to potential buyers. The bull, DAJ 16 0129, is strutting its stuff during Frontier Bonsmaras’ pre-sale tour a few weeks ahead of the group’s group sale due to take place at the Grahamstown Auction Yard on 15 August. It will later be one of two bulls to fetch sale-topping prices of R80 000, with the average for the 58 bulls being more than R47 000. This is the 12th successive year of this annual event…

To make chicken thighs with an ancient seasoning for four, you will need: 8 chicken thighs 2 tablespoons of za’atar 4 cloves of fresh garlic 2 cans of chickpeas 2 tablespoons of sesame seeds 4 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil 200ml of full-fat, plain, Greek-style yoghurt 3 tablespoons of coarsely chopped fresh mint Salt on the table for individual final seasoning Za’atar is a tart herb and spice mix that is standard in many Levantine kitchens, from Lebanon down to Egypt. The ingredients are herbs, sumac, sesame seeds and salt. The herb component varies, but traditionally it contains hyssop, also known as Syrian oregano. This has long been used as a flavouring, and in Biblical times was also used as an antiseptic and hence for purification: “Purge me with hyssop,…

Last month’s State President’s Jobs Summit highlighted the need to encourage entrepreneurship in South Africa. But, argues David Priilaid in CREATIVITY EXPLAINED (Peter Flack, R299), the barriers to productivity are not all practical. An associate professor in management studies at the University of Cape Town, he explains why. 1. In touch Students often arrive as mechanistic strategy executors clinging to their spreadsheets and wanting to check their understanding of discounted cash flow. Instead, we put them back in touch with their creativity through activities such as singing, mindfulness, creative writing and baking. 2. Gap There’s often a gap between what businesses say they want to achieve and how they go about it. That’s because they’re very good at executing projects and plans, but notoriously bad at coming up with good…

The dentist’s armoury of weapons of pain has certainly grown since the days of a pair of pliers. Bridges, crowns and jawbone implants now offer the promise of a perfect smile. When last did you see a teenager without dental braces? I suspect, though, that this is more a plot by mothers to make their daughters unattractive to boyfriends than to straighten crooked teeth. Surely any person choosing dentistry as a profession has a sadistic streak. Imagine, endless opportunity to inflict pain! Taking a sip of coffee with Jan on my stoep, I felt the nerve in a back molar explode. “Aaaahaaaa!” I moaned. “Toothache, Townie?” Jan smiled unsympathetically. ”Forget the coffee, rather have a Klipdrift. But lose the ice.” I hadn’t been to a dentist since arriving on the…

“Agriculture is the focus of many political and public debates. Young leaders in agriculture need to take the lead in determining our future – it is as simple as that. Threats and speculations on the sector’s future abound; it is now more important than ever to debate, negotiate and participate in discourse, and offer arguments and counter-arguments effectively. Unfortunately, this is not and has never been a well-developed skill among farmers, and particularly not when debate takes place over language and culture boundaries. But South Africa’s farmers have no choice: there is no longer another option but to develop these skills for their own survival and success as well as that of the sector. As the Chinese proverb has it, ‘When the winds of change rage, some build shelters, while…

46 YEARS AGO A farmer in the normally dry Kalahari stunned his neighbours when he produced a bumper crop of watermelons, beans, maize, pumpkins and sunflower. In the awe-inspiring vastness of the Kalahari – where man and beast often die and where plants wither because of the idiosyncrasies of Mother Nature – is where self-styled ‘Mad Apie Dames’ farms, and he farms successfully too, as recent crop returns have shown. “People call me Mad Apie Dames. I am the Jonah who has a yen for ploughing up streets and sand dunes and the man who is responsible for driving away the rain. I am the man who would like to erect an edifice to the donkey, as a symbol of our civilisation, on one of the thousands of red, shifting…

Invsestment holding company Zeder has posted strong financial results for the six months ending 31 August, with all its investee companies, apart from Agrivision Africa, managing to stabilise the lower levels of profitability reported in the previous interim period. The lower profitability was primarily due to the impact of the drought, according to Zeder’s interim financial results. Recurring headline earnings per share increased 158% to 9,8c, while HEPS increased 605% to 30,3c. The sum-of-the-parts value per share, however, decreased 15% to R6,67 on 31 August, while the value of its underlying portfolio decreased from R14,2 billion on 28 February to R12,5 billion on 31 August. Zeder’s 27% stake in Pioneer Foods, the company’s largest investment, representing 49,1% of its portfolio, declined from R7,7 billion at the end of February to…

Some government-owned as well as privately owned land suitable for land reform has no financial value. This emerged in a presentation by the head of the office of the Valuer-General, Christopher Gavor, to the Parliamentary portfolio committee on rural development and land reform. Gavor told the committee that land valuations were based on a combination of how the land was originally procured, the market value, the extent to which government subsidies were used for the acquisition, and what it was currently being used for. According to media reports, Gavor also said that “there can be examples of privately owned property where the land is not currently being used. The economic value of that property will [then] be zero.” Louis Meintjes, president of TAU SA, said his organisation questioned “this senseless…

A total of 25 small businesses will be receiving development funding as part of the recently launched KwaZulu-Natal Exporter Competitiveness Programme. The programme has been initiated and funded by the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs, and is being implemented in partnership with Productivity South Africa. The Small Enterprise Development Agency had reportedly also pledged funding to support emerging exporters in the province. A statement by Productivity SA said the key objectives of the programme included improving and modernising exporter practices and infrastructure, creating opportunities for previously disadvantaged people, and enabling small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) to actively participate in the KwaZulu-Natal export market. A brochure released by Trade and Investment KZN highlighted eThala Biofuels based in the uMuziwabantu Local Municipality as one of the agroprocessing…

I’ve been on an intriguing journey of discovery, and it was all triggered by my learning about Agricolleges International (agricolleges.com) and the Hoedspruit Hub (facebook.com/hoedspruithub). These two recently established agricultural training institutions were founded by farmers for farmers, and as I read about their vision, I began to wonder how many other businesses would put their energy and money into training employees for companies other than their own. It doesn’t really make sense, does it? Spending time and money training people to provide your competitors with employees to do a better job of competing with you! But for South Africa’s farmers it seems the most natural thing to do. A WIDE RANGE OF ORGANISATIONS By my count there are currently 32 different farmers’ commodity organisations operating in South Africa, covering…

In 2013, when Gert Claassen and his father Koot exchanged the fertile maize lands of Delmas in Mpumalanga for the wheat lands near Malmesbury in the Western Cape, they were looking for ways to combine quality of life with the opportunities that the beautiful Swartland held. ‘SA PRODUCES SOME OF THE WORLD’S BEST BARLEY’ “Because the Swartland is such a stable wheat- and sheep-producing region, wheat rotations here have traditionally been limited to medics and canola. Coming from the Highveld, I struggled with the idea of planting only one main crop, so I started working on alternatives,” recalls Claassen. One such alternative was barley, but past attempts to establish it as a commercial crop in the Swartland had been unsuccessful, according to Claassen. This was because Clipper, the only variety…

Subtlety is the order of the day here. The dish is understated, yet has the herbal notes of the za’atar and the nutty flavour of the roasted sesame seeds, resulting in a complexity that needs a wine match with similar qualities. I went for two very different wines and found that both worked well as a match for the dish. Martin Lamprecht’s Marras brand makes two distinct wines from the Chenin Blanc grape: the fuller and richer Los Tros from the Swartland, and the lighter Piekenierskloof Chenin Blanc, which went beautifully with the dish. It is light and fresh, with baked pear and lime flavours and a zippy acidity that brings each forkful to life. The wine in my second glass was the salmon-coloured Spier Chardonnay Pinot Noir, a rosé-style…

Rice farmers generally grow rice in flooded paddies, which exposes it to more arsenic than other grain crops, as it is highly water-soluble. The metal can be found in irrigation water and other water sources in low-lying areas. While white rice is lower in mercury and arsenic than brown, it carries its own hidden danger: talc. White rice and polished rice may contain some residual talc as this is used during the polishing process. It is wise to rinse rice thoroughly before cooking, as talc may contain asbestos. Studies show that soaking can remove up to 80% of the arsenic in heavily tainted rice. Soak rice overnight before cooking. After soaking, discard the liquid, rinse the rice thoroughly, and cook in fresh water. It is important to remove the arsenic…

Film producer and foodie entrepreneur Kobus Botha grew up in a Klein Karoo farmhouse with no running water or electricity and “where you had to walk 50m outside to go to the toilet”. Now he’s settled in France, and selling a new take on entertaining to that foodie nation. On fires set up near the River Seine, he teaches the fine art of what he calls LE BRAAI (Struik Lifestyle, R250) “surrounded by history and culture”. Botha believes braaiing is “the jazz of cooking” and it is this improvisation that intrigues even classically trained French cooks. He features duck breast Namibian Kapana-style, describes his love of ribs, and reminisces about fishing and braaiing the catch with his dad when he was a laaitie. A wonderful tribute to South Africa's…

Subtrop Marketing Symposium 7 NOVEMBER WHERE IS SOUTH AFRICA HEADED, AND DO GROWTH OPPORTUNITIES STILL EXIST IN THE COUNTRY? THE SA SUBTROPICAL GROWERS’ ASSOCIATION BELIEVES THEY DO, AND WILL DISCUSS THOSE AVAILABLE TO THE SUBTROPICAL FRUIT INDUSTRY AT ITS UPCOMING SYMPOSIUM. CONFERENCES, WORKSHOPS & EXPOS 8 TO 10 NOVEMBER Agriculture & Forestry Expo, White River, Mpumalanga.Visit agfo.co.za . 22 NOVEMBER International Conference on Agriculture, Food and Aqua 2018 Cape Town. Email Lily Smith at agriculture2018conference@gmail.com . 26 TO 28 NOVEMBER African Agri Investment and Trade Indaba, Cape Town.Visit agri-indaba.com . 28 TO 29 NOVEMBER Smart Farming/Precision Agriculture Conference 2018, Radisson Blu Le Vendome, Cape Town. Email Vusi Xaba at vusi@empiretraining.co.za . COURSES & TRAINING 5 TO 9 NOVEMBER…

Lesotho’s new Agricultural Marketing (Wool and Mohair Licensing) Regulations seek to introduce licensing requirements that are approved and issued at the discretion of the Ministry of Small Business, Cooperatives and Marketing. The new export requirements stipulate that the country’s wool and mohair must be prepared, brokered, traded and auctioned in Lesotho before it can be exported. In this way, Lesotho is seeking to ensure that all value-added activities are performed in-country and thereby capturing margins that would otherwise be accumulated in South Africa, where wool and mohair are traded on the international market. This effectively halts intra-regional trade between Lesotho and South Africa, and changes the market landscape. SOUTHERN AFRICAN CUSTOMS UNION REGULATIONS The broader question, however, is whether this unilateral decision is consistent with the provisions of the Southern…

The Swaziland Justice Forum has accused the Royal Swaziland Sugar Corporation of being complicit in the illegal eviction of sugar cane farmers and their families from what should have been by now their freehold land. The forum alleged that these evictions were largely motivated by King Mswati III of Swaziland’s desire to incorporate this land into his national trust and then lease it to the sugar corporation. Tibiyo Taka Ngwane, a wealth fund also held in trust by the king, owns 53,1% of the latter. According to the forum, in 1962, when Swaziland was still a British protectorate, the British helped empower some rural citizens by establishing a large smallholder sugar cane growing scheme, called Vuvulane Irrigated Farms. Following pressure from the king and contrary to the pledge to eventually…

South Africa’s deciduous fruit and wine industry, in collaboration with the Jobs Fund and the Land Bank, has launched a R600 billion blended financing scheme called Hortfin. This ring-fenced loan facility for the fruit and wine industry value chains was expected to provide innovative and comprehensive financing and support systems to promote job creation, transformation and sustainability in the sector, according to the CEO of Hortgro, Anton Rabe. The fund would mostly target agricultural entrepreneurs from previously disadvantaged groups, and their businesses would have to adhere to various criteria, of which at least a 51% black ownership was one, he said. According to the head of the Jobs Fund, Najwa Allie-Edries, the fruit industry generated R30 billion in income annually and provided more than 130 000 jobs. “However, it has…

Vegetables farmers need to identify opportunities to enhance their offering on the market floor if they are to secure higher prices and remain competitive. Speaking at the Enza Zaden farmers’ day in Komatipoort, Geo van Zyl, managing director of market agents RSA Cape Town, said a farmer’s job was not done once the product had been shipped to the market. ‘PRODUCERS SHOULD VISIT THE MARKET FLOOR’ “Farmers should visit the market floor to see where the opportunities are and where they can better position their produce to get a better price.” Referring to the type of packaging used, Van Zyl asked producers to consider whether it caused quality losses en route to market. “Is the packaging what the consumer wants? Does the cooling system of the transport need to be…

Industry leaders in the Australian agricultural sector have condemned new Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s plan to force social welfare recipients to work on farms. Morrison said he wanted farmers to report their workforce needs to a government agency and they would then be matched with unemployed workers. “Australian taxpayers expect genuine job seekers to be looking for work. If a job seeker turns down a suitable job offer without reasonable excuse, they will lose their taxpayer-funded income support payments for up to four weeks,” he said. Chief executive of the Australian Vegetable and Potato Growers Federation, James Whiteside, said what the A$3,5 billion (R36 billion) industry needed was a workforce that wanted to work on farms. “If [farmers] are forced to rely on workers who do not want to be…

The Cape Wildlife Group, which comprises private reserve owners and game farmers committed to the conservation of wildlife in the Western Cape, wants to change the perception that tourists do not consider the Western Cape to be a prime wildlife destination. This was according to Johan Meyer, chairperson of the Cape Wildlife Group, speaking at the recent launch of the group in Stellenbosch. He said the group wanted to promote the Western Cape as a premier wildlife destination, thereby creating jobs and contributing to the province’s economy. The group would be focusing on ecotourism, breeding of wildlife, hunting, and the supply of game meat to the market. Also speaking at the event, Anton Bredell, MEC for Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning in the Western Cape, highlighted the fact…

The international poultry industry has experienced increasingly slower growth and greater volatility since 2011, according to Rabobank’s 2018 Global Poultry Report. Growth in the industry had fallen to a level of between 1% and 2% a year, while market share had declined from 11,5% to 10,9% over the period under review. This could be ascribed to, among other factors, the avian influenza threat, increased protectionism, and supply challenges in export countries such as China and Brazil. The report stated that further changes could be expected in the industry in the foreseeable future as a result of increasing exports from new export countries such as Russia, Ukraine and Vietnam. Poultry nevertheless remained the world’s most highly traded meat protein, constituting 41% of the world’s 31 million-ton meat trade market. Chicken was…

To celebrate the 150th aquaculture article in Farmer’s Weekly, I would like to take an overview of where in South Africa certain types of freshwater aquaculture are feasible. This is in response to many enquiries from interested farmers on whether certain species can be farmed on their land, and if so, how. TROUT The most successful aquaculture species, trout, are severely limited by two factors: suitable water and temperature. Trout, originating from cool, clear, fast-flowing river systems, find themselves in a hostile environment in our widely seasonal climate. Trout will not survive temperatures greater than 21°C for any length of time. And even if a lower temperature can be maintained, the lack of oxygen is a limiting factor at high altitudes. Therefore trout, be they for angling or aquaculture, are…

A quiet revolution in normally dead urban spaces has seen seven farms flourish on the rooftops of Johannesburg inner-city buildings since October last year, with four others about to take off. The project is called the Urban Agriculture Initiative. Between 50 and 60 farms are planned for the next three years, with a spillover effect of about 100 related enterprises, such as agri-processors and technology suppliers, according to Dr Michael Magondo, director of business incubator Wouldn’t It Be Cool (WIBC), which trains the farmers. Magondo is also a director of the Johannesburg Inner City Partnership, a coalition of various parties involved in rejuvenating the CBD. The partnership is working with the City of Joburg, the Department of Small Business Development, the Small Enterprise Development Agency and SAB KickStart to raise…

Have you ever stopped to think about the remarkable complexity of fresh produce production and marketing? I try to cover as many aspects of this as possible in my column, reminding readers of this benefit or that new development. But I’ve realised that the more I research a topic, the more there is to learn. CHANGE: THE ONLY CONSTANT New product development, new ways of satisfying consumer requirements, improvements to the health benefits of produce, new marketing and packaging concepts … the list goes on and on. Change constantly drives this industry, and ultimately ensures better sales. It also makes fresh produce a uniquely stimulating industry to be involved in. BEAUTY IS IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER An interesting example of change and fresh thinking is the concept of…

Ever tried ‘casting’? No, it’s not the thing you do with a fishing rod, nor is it a molten metal being poured into a mould. It’s casting as in ‘broadcasting’. In July 2013, Google launched its first Chromecast player, a device or dongle that plugs into an HDMI (high-definition multimedia interface) port on your Smart TV. You can then ‘cast’ media from a digital device to the TV screen. The Chromecast is available from R740, according to pricecheck.co.za. Once purchased, there are no more fees or monthly payments. All you need to do is download the Google Home app from Google Play, and you can start casting. With the Google Home app, your mobile device becomes an extension of your TV. It becomes, in effect, a remote control, enabling you…