Pork shortages set to place a damper on Chinese festivities

Shortages and soaring prices of pork in China, due to the widespread African swine fever outbreaks, have resulted in traders struggling to secure sufficient pork supplies for the upcoming holiday season.

SA’s Brahman council clamps down on ‘show-ring cheats’

The council of the Brahman Cattle Breeders’ Society of South Africa has condemned the actions of a small group of Brahman stud breeders, who allegedly altered the birthdates of some of their cattle to give them an unfair advantage in the show ring.

Combine harvester sales run out of steam in August

No combine harvesters were sold in South Africa during August, compared with the nine sold in August 2018, according to the latest statistics from the South African Agricultural Machinery Association (SAAMA).

Southern Cape urgently needs follow-up rain – Grain SA

Winter grain producers in the Southern Cape urgently need follow-up rain to ensure a good 2019 winter grain harvest.

Romanian live sheep exports continuing despite EU warnings

Despite warnings from the EU, Romania is continuing with the controversial exportation of an estimated 70 000 live sheep to the Persian Gulf region this year.

Violence takes a toll on farmers – agri associations

Agri SA and the African Farmers’ Association of South Africa (AFASA) have called on government to step up action against escalating violence currently evident across South Africa.

Assistance for landowners to eradicate invasive alien plants

Clearing invasive species from a hectare of land could easily cost a landowner between R12 000 and 15 000, according to Cobus Meiring of the secretariat of the Southern Cape Landowners Initiative.

Agriculture performs poorly despite 3,1% GDP growth

Statistics South Africa’s gross domestic product (GDP) data for the second quarter of the year showed a growth of 3,1%, driven by mining, finance, trade and government services.

Government leaders intervene in KZN community land conflicts

Leaders in both national and provincial government spheres have stepped in to try to resolve ongoing conflicts within two separate KwaZulu-Natal communities over agricultural land acquired through the land restitution programme.

Calling all small-scale black sorghum farmers

Grant funding is now available from the Diageo Empowerment Trust South Africa (DETSA) for developing black sorghum farmers across South Africa to supply United National Breweries.

Agriculture pushing Amazon deforestation to record levels

More than 7 700 forest fires have been reported in Brazil in the past week alone, according to data from the country’s national institute for space research, Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais (INPE).

SA consumers set to face further food price pressure

Food inflation is set to increase in the short term due to various macro-economic indicators, which means that South African consumers can expect further food price increases.

Small-scale operations most susceptible to African swine fever

The South African government and the organised pig farming sector are working closely together to prevent highly contagious and often fatal African swine fever (ASF) from potentially wiping out the pig population of informal and small-scale producers.