Business

With a land size of just over 78 000km², Scotland is only slightly bigger than Mpumalanga. Yet its total annual food and drink exports amount to £5,3 billion (R97 billion). Anneli Groenewald explains how branding boosted the industry, and how farmers continually seek new opportunities.

An informal trader is described in Western Cape government legislation as “any person who carries on a business as a street vendor or hawker, including an employee of such a person, and includes any person who trades in a public place”.

Wensleydale Farms in Centurion, Gauteng, is well established as an organic grower. New owner Magapa Phaweni plans to use her business skills to build on the farm’s success and expand its exports.

Five years ago, Beefmaster Feedlot near Christiana embarked on a strategy to encompass the entire value chain. Today, its operations extend from producing feed to selling its meat at retail outlets.

Ten developing Free State maize farmers are achieving success, thanks to the help of a dedicated mentor and the support of agricultural companies. Susan Botes-Marais reports on the VKB-GFADA Maize Project on state-owned land near Senekal.

David Matobako, an ambitious young farmer, is proving that agricultural reform is not an idle dream. Susan Botes-Marais visited him on his Free State farm and saw how a sound partnership is making his dream of commercial grain farming come to life.

Erik Phinallephe (55) was born and raised in Stellenbosch and started working as a general farm labourer when he was only 12.

Thorn Park trading store began farming chickens 19 years ago after fortune walked through the door – literally. Now raising in excess of 10 000 chickens, the enterprise is proving to be the store’s proverbial golden egg. Grant Hollins visited the operation outside East London to find out more.

According to various climate change models, the average temperature in South Africa will increase by 2°C within the next 40 years and by as much as 6°C within the next 80 years.

The market for macadamias is growing. According to Martin van der Merwe of Sabie Valley Macadamias in Hazyview, Mpumalanga, the Chinese market alone has the capacity to absorb 100 000t of macadamias.

Hard work and tenacity have turned a tiny enterprise into a flourishing commercial operation.

Your Future Dairy Training offers aspiring farmers hands-on and practical training.

In the semi-arid region of the Kahalari, under the desert sun, the Berekisanang farming project is bustling with activity. Jaco Visser reports on this citrus and table grape farm.

The Mozambique government has committed itself to unlocking the enormous agricultural potential of the Beira corridor, but progress has been slow – and costly.

‘Don’t romanticise small-scale farming’ was the message at the recent Potatoes South Africa symposium held to discuss speeding up black economic empowerment through partnerships.

Pinky Buthelezi never dreamt that leaving rural KwaZulu-Natal for Gauteng in 2000 would result in her receiving the ARC’s 2013 Gauteng Emerging Beef Farmer award. Mike Burgess visited her on Leeuwfontein near Nigel to learn how she developed from cashier to farmer.

The Johannesburg Stock Exchange offers the futures contract and the put option. Either can provide small-scale maize farmers with peace of mind. The JSE’s Raphael Karuaihe explains.

According to some, there is a viable alternative to Minister Gugile Nkwinti’s controversial 50:50 land reform proposal. With this option, the land holds its value and farmers can improve economies of scale. Piet Smit of the Bosveld Group and Dr Theo de Jager of Agri SA talk to Nan Smith.

SA Stud Book-Farmer’s Weekly 2014 Mentor of the Year, Pat Hobbs, is highly respected among the Nguni breeders’ community – not only for producing top quality stud cattle, but for his willingness to assist inexperienced Nguni breeders with advice gained through years of farming. Grant Hollins travelled to the Eastern Cape to learn more about Pat’s breeding and mentoring skills.

After several years of weak profits, beef producers are more optimistic. Tracy Davids of the Bureau for Food and Agriculture Policy explains why she is bullish on beef.