Cultivating effective young black farmers
Independent agricultural education institutions catering to the black youth could be an answer to our land reform failures. With the financial support of private corporations and the mentorship of successful...
Fruit export chain – transparency needed
Trade liberalisation has resulted in huge market expansion for South African fruit. It has, however, also resulted in numerous new challenges for producers. Glenneis Erasmus reports.
Aloes alleviate poverty in the Eastern Cape
Cape Aloes (Aloe ferox) in the Eastern Cape have provided the Xhosa people with medicinal and cosmetic necessities for hundreds of years. Recently their value has been recognised in helping...
Could jatropha fuel biodiesel production?
Jatropha is a hardy, high oil content crop with serious potential for biodiesel production in South Africa. But as it is classified as a noxious weed, large-scale cultivation has also...
Agritourism helps ostrich farm fly high
Agritourism has grown substantially from 2% of the tourism industry in the Western Cape in 1996 to 10% of the foreign tourist market currently. For most farms, tourism contributes between...
SA’s milk industry -how sour is the situation?
The South African dairy industry is currently in turmoil, with milk producers complaining of poor milk prices, milk buying companies being charged with anti-competitive activities, and retailers being accused of...
Gauteng agriculture is going great guns
To most people Gauteng would not bring to mind the image of lush crop fields or technologically advanced agriculture. Yet the Gauteng Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Environment (GDACE) has...
SA dairy farming- not all doom and gloom
Poor profitability due to high input costs and low producer prices is having a devastating impact on South Africa's dairy industry, causing almost 30 producers to leave the industry per...
Estate cultivates its greatest asset: its workforce
Farmers have been suffering accusations of human rights violations of employees. However, an Agri Wes-Cape survey last year revealed that most farmers in the Western Cape invest more in their...
Is closer really better for the environment?
Ever-mounting anxiety about global warming is sparking consumer concerns, particularly in the UK, that carbon dioxide emitted while transporting food over long distances can contribute significantly to global warming. Wilma...
Learn, earn and come back to farm
Young South Africans appear to be in high demand in the United States, especially as seasonal farmworkers.
Stock theft tops the agenda, but solutions are in sight
Sheep farming in KwaZulu-Natal is reeling from the effects of rampant stock theft, and as a result many farmers have either switched to cattle farming or left agriculture altogether. Issue...
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