News

South Africa’s fruit exporters had a roller-coaster year, as optimism over record yields and exports was tempered by market jitters over tough tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump’s administration and ongoing logistical uncertainty.

Failing infrastructure upstream of Hammanskraal near Pretoria, Gauteng, continues to undermine livestock welfare, crop production, and farm viability in northern Tshwane.

South African extra-virgin olive oil producers have earned some of the highest honours at major international competitions over the past year, despite the local industry accounting for just 0,99% of the global olive oil market, according to the SA Olive Association.

South African farmers are set to receive modest but welcome cost relief in January 2026, as a projected diesel price cut eases pressure during peak operations, particularly harvesting and land preparation.

US President Donald Trump’s trade war with China was expected to dampen festive cheer this year, with artificial Christmas trees noticeably more expensive for US consumers this holiday season.

A hot, windy weekend kept Western Cape fire crews busy on the last weekend before Christmas, with a fire at Laborie Wine Estate in Paarl and disruptions in a number of other farming areas.

After Minister of Agriculture John Steenhuisen announced that South Africa’s entire national herd would be vaccinated against foot-and-mouth disease, scepticism quickly surfaced among farmers and industry role players. Questions were raised about feasibility, timelines, vaccine supply, budgets, and enforcement capacity.

For many in the Western Cape, the severe drought of 2017/18 is a distant memory, but on the Mossel Bay Vlakte the drought never really ended.

At just 13 years old, Zimbabwean Tarylyn Chipo Bote won a national agricultural competition in November, earning recognition for her successful rabbit project.

Farmers, veterinarians and industry experts met in Potchefstroom, North West, on 12 December to discuss practical ways to manage the growing foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) crisis affecting livestock across South Africa.

While annual consumer price inflation eased month-on-month in November, surging meat prices are putting a damper on December braais.

The foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) situation in the Western Cape remains stable, with no further spread detected beyond the original index farm near Gouda, according to Agri Western Cape (AWC) and the Red Meat Producers Organisation Western Cape (RPOWC).

Kleiheuwel Trust, a 4 700ha mixed farming operation in the Western Cape, achieved a record R306/kg for 14,1-micron Merino wool at the BKB Live Wool Auction on 3 December in Gqeberha, Eastern Cape, despite three years of climatic shocks.

The first Dorper sheep sale ever held in Zimbabwe’s Matabeleland region took place recently, signalling that the breed has entered a growth phase in numbers and public interest.

It has been more than a year since Grain SA and the South African Cereals and Oilseeds Trade Association formally requested a revision of the wheat import tariff formula.

High volumes of fresh produce have coincided with cash-strapped consumers, bringing a halt to festive season pricing. Farmers are therefore unlikely to see the higher prices for their produce that are typical at this time of year.

Farmers across South Africa’s Highveld region are being urged to look out for a fast-spreading poisonous shrub called Cestrum parqui, which has already caused cattle deaths in several areas.

At the Agbiz Media Day held recently in Pretoria, Thapelo Machaba, Agbiz agricultural economist and policy analyst, outlined a series of initiatives aimed at ensuring the local agricultural value chain becomes more inclusive, competitive, and aligned with global workplace expectations.

Zimbabwe’s agriculture sector is set to benefit from the government’s regulatory fee reforms, which will see statutory fees either scrapped or reduced in the coming year.

At the Agbiz Media Day 2025 held in Pretoria on 5 December, Agbiz CEO Theo Boshoff said the policy environment in 2025 had delivered “more positive outcomes than challenges”, despite several issues early in the year that dominated public debate.