News

Pests pose a significant threat to agriculture in Africa, accounting for up to 60% of crop losses, according to Margaux Rundstadler, director of public affairs and communication at CropLife Africa and the Middle East. Climate change is expected to make the situation even worse, as changing weather patterns and shifting seasons bring new pests and diseases.

Goss’s wilt, caused by the bacterium Clavibacter nebraskensis, was first identified in the US in 1969 and has since spread to Southern Africa, prompting action by farmers, scientists, and policymakers.

Astral Foods Limited has reported a strong recovery for the year ended 30 September 2025, with revenue up 10%, profit before interest and tax rising 11%, earnings per share increasing by 6%, and cash generated from operations improving by 20%.

Global dairy prices have rebounded over the past year amid tight supply and a shift towards recognising dairy’s environmental value. South African producers remain competitive, though weak demand, poor infrastructure, and trade barriers continue to pose challenges for them.

Zimbabwe's government has compensated the first batch of 85 farmers from European countries who lost their farms during the country’s land reform programme, with 10 of them paid in full.

The agriculture sector’s resilience was celebrated on Friday, 14 November, during the Agricultural Writers SA awards evening, where farmers, agriculturalists, and agricultural communicators were lauded for their contribution to the sector’s success. The event took place in Worcester, Western Cape.

The Agricultural Research Council announced the winners of the 2025 National Master Dairyman Awards in Stellenbosch, Western Cape, on Thursday, 13 November.

A Rift Valley fever outbreak confirmed in livestock in the Kakamas area near Augrabies has prompted the Northern Cape Department of Agriculture, Environmental Affairs, Rural Development and Land Reform to call for immediate on-farm biosecurity action.

The Daidoh Summer Kid Mohair Awards, hosted by Mohair South Africa on 12 October at the Botanics in Graaff-Reinet, Eastern Cape, welcomed over 220 guests from across the mohair value chain, including farmers, brokers, and international partners.

The increase in frequency and severity of climate disasters has meant that farmers are increasingly unlikely to recover from adverse weather events. The agriculture sector has therefore reiterated calls for government to provide subsidised insurance to maintain food production.

A Science, Technology and Innovation Roadmap for Agriculture, being developed by the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation in partnership with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, is expected to be completed by end-September 2026.

While South Africa’s agriculture sector may not have featured explicitly in Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) delivered on Wednesday, leading economists say some reforms and policy shifts outlined in the speech point to meaningful indirect gains for the sector.

This year has been a defining one for South Africa’s macadamia industry, according to Shane Hartman, CEO of Global Macadamias.

Sugar imports into South Africa surged by more than 400% between January and August 2025 compared with the same period in 2024, affecting local sales and rural livelihoods.

In Kenya, a mobile app combining science, data, and partnerships is giving farmers affordable access to high-quality agronomical advice, helping them make informed decisions throughout the growing season.

Adding indigenous crops and medicinal plants to the list of declared agricultural products could formalise and unlock the potential of industries currently valued at around R12 billion a year.

Kenya made history in October 2025 when Media for Environment, Science, Health and Agriculture (MESHA) hosted the International Federation of Agricultural Journalists (IFAJ) Congress for the first time in East Africa, and the third time in Africa overall.

Digital fatigue has far-reaching consequences for marketers. With consumers’ increasingly limited attention spans and less variation in consumed media, marketing campaigns have fewer opportunities to capture interest.

As a historic event for South Africa, the 2025 G20 Summit offers an opportunity to advance the country’s interests and those of the rest of Africa.

By choosing to take short cuts in post-harvest on-farm cooling, table grape producers are effectively choosing to compromise the quality of their product upon arrival in export markets.