Farmer's Weekly 26 August 2022

On 30 May 2022, the UN released a report welcoming the adoption of the Durban Call to Action on the Elimination of Child Labour by representatives of governments as well as workers’ and employers’ organisations, among others, who attended the 5th Global Conference on the Elimination of Child Labour, held in South Africa. Unfortunately, the report labels agriculture as an industry that ‘increases pollution’ and ‘reduces biodiversity’. While this kind of loaded language hardly gives the report much credibility, it cannot be ignored that the use of child labour in agriculture around the world is highly problematic and must be addressed urgently. Of all industries that ‘employ’ children, agriculture is perhaps the most culpable. Of course, this doesn’t mean that all farmers, or even the majority of farmers, use children for…

“Since the debate between Francis Galton, Alfred Russel Wallace and Charles Darwin between the 1850s and 1870s, many ideas have been proposed for the possible functions of a zebra’s stripes. The main hypotheses are the following: • Apparent size increase The stripes could induce a visual illusion, increasing the apparent size of zebras and ensuring an advantage over their predators. • Decreased visibility in twilight At dusk and dawn, or in moonlight, stripes might be difficult to discern. • Dazzling the eyes of predators through motion The moving stripes of escaping zebras may dazzle and confuse predators, making it difficult for them to select an individual zebra from the herd. • Optical camouflage from predators Stripes may dissolve the contours of the animals, enabling them to blend in with their background. • Intraspecific communication by individual stripe patterns Zebras may…

The Citrus Planting Management course has been designed to introduce learners to citrus farming. The course is ideal for emerging and established farmers, as well as recent matriculants. After the course, learners will be able to identify and differentiate between different citrus cultivars, and they’ll know which resources are needed to establish an orchard. They will also have a basic knowledge of planning orchard layouts, what is needed to establish young trees, as well as the importance of accurate record-keeping. Email Agricolleges International at admissions@agricolleges.com. CONFERENCES, WORKSHOPS AND EXPOS 29 AUGUST TO 2 SEPTEMBER Southern Africa’s Agri-Tech Trends and Technology, Pretoria. Visit africa-agri.co.za/#goingforward. 17 TO 18 NOVEMBER Agribusiness Conference 2022, Protea Hotel, Sandton. Email Buhle Ndokweni at buhle@mathema.co.za, or phone 011 862 4001. COURSES AND TRAINING 22 TO 26 AUGUST Academy Poultry Module, George. Email Rothman Livestock and Training Services at office@RLTSafrica.com. 24…

Soetwater Wind Farm, located in the Northern Cape’s Karoo Hoogland Local Municipality, will be able to generate 585GWh and potentially stave off the emission of around 600 000t of CO2 every year. The farm features Vestas V136-4.2 MW wind turbines, the largest on the African continent to date. The wind farm was awarded to Enel Green Power South Africa (EGP RSA) in April 2013 as part of round four of South Africa’s Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme, and is supported by a 20-year power purchase agreement with Eskom. ENEL GREEN POWER IS COMMITTED TO PLAYING A VITAL ROLE IN SOLVING SA’S ENERGY CRISIS Soetwater Wind Farm is one of EGP RSA’s seven wind farms in South Africa; the other six are: Nojoli (88MW), Oyster Bay (140MW) and Nxuba (140MW) in the…

MOST POPULAR ON FARMERSWEEKLY.CO.ZA FARMERS AND GOVERNMENT CLASH OVER STRAY LIVESTOCK Livestock farmers in Botswana are at odds with that country’s government with regard to regulations that allow the latter to repossess stray livestock and sell the animals at public auctions. Read the full article at bit.ly/3vYA3GV, or scan here: Posted: 10 August 2022. Follow us at @FarmersWeeklySA FROM FACEBOOK @FarmersWeeklySA FW posted a link to an article titled ‘Boran bull smashes SA breed record with R2,3 million price tag’, and some of our followers shared their opinions on the subject. Posted: 9 August 2022. READERS’ COMMENTS Thebamokone Ditshego: “What’s so special about this stud Boran bull? I believe that buyers these days are seeking fame and nothing else. [With] R2,3 million, you can buy a herd of cattle.” Phakwathwayo Mnguni: “[It’s] a breeding machine.” Partias Shillenge: “If it was sold by [President…

After just four years of breeding Merino sheep on his stud farm, JH Hattingh of Lady Grey in the Eastern Cape showed some startling results, as this article revealed. It has been significant over recent years just how often new Merino studs of only a few years’ standing have walked off with top laurels at shows and sales. There are many reasons for this, but the most obvious and pleasing one is that which reflects the breeding potential of sheep from the older or more established studs. The position is that any prospective new breeder (provided he or she has the money) can select animals of such sound genotype from the established studs that he or she is virtually guaranteed of their prepotency. But not all credit for the success of these studs…