News

Outbreaks of rabbit haemorrhagic disease (RHD) in the Northern and Western Cape have been confirmed by the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (agriculture department).

“Earlier than usual flooding” stretching from the Prieska to Kakamas areas in the Orange River region of the Northern Cape, have left farmers concerned about the climatic outlook for the rest of the season.

Wheat producers in Zimbabwe had delivered a record volume of wheat of almost 327 000t to that country’s Grain Marketing Board by 25 November.

With farmers in Argentina experiencing a third consecutive growing season marked by drought conditions induced by the La Niña weather system, soya bean and maize planting were off to an unusually slow start at the beginning of the 2022/23 season.

Despite the fact that the South African government had spent more than R7 billion between 1998 and 2020 to try to contain the spread of invasive alien species, the struggle to control these plants was continuing, according to a report by Stellenbosch University.

South African farmers are joining the global trend of using professional service robots, called field robots, “to address the multitude of challenges brought on by daily farm life”, according to Agri SA’s head of rural safety, Kobus Visser.

The in-calf Brahman cow SER 19 32 recently set a new South African record when she was sold for R1,2 million at the Prima Genetika Brahman Auction held at Castle de Wildt near Modimolle on 19 November.

The Namibia Agricultural Union (NAU) is committed to maintaining the human dignity of farmworkers and to ensure that they could enjoy a dignified retirement.

Agricultural systems will have to change to adapt to climate change and improve food security. This was the message that emerged from delegates at the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference, commonly referred to as COP27, held at Sharm El-Sheikh in Egypt.

One of the finest table olive varieties in the world, Nocellara del Belice, is grown in the olive groves near the town of Campobello di Mazara on the Italian island of Sicily.

The rapid increase in the Kruger National Park’s (KNP) Indian mynah (Acridotheres tristis) population is disturbing, according to Dr Llewellyn Foxcroft, a scientist with the South African National Parks based in the park.

Data on farmers’ summer crop planting intentions for the 2022/23 season point to yet another large harvest, according to Wandile Sihlobo, chief economist at Agbiz.

The Zimbabwean government has announced a strategic initiative to help fill the gap between milk supply and demand in that country.

Egg producers in the UK are being forced to reduce the size of their flocks, with some leaving the industry altogether as soaring production costs make their businesses unviable.

Although the tractor sales figures for October released by the South African Agricultural Machinery Association (SAAMA) on Monday (7 November) were the highest in 40 years, this was probably based on “necessity, rather than extravagance”, according to Derek Matthews, chairperson of Grain SA, who said that “after several years of drought, many farmers had delayed replacing tractors.”

The petting of captive bred lion cubs has become an enormous problem in South Africa. This was according to Reinet Meyer, a chief inspector at the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the society’s branch manager in Bloemfontein.

For the first time in two years, the Land Bank has achieved a “clean audit”, after also posting a profit of R1,31 billion for the 2021/2022 financial year.

Those farming alongside South Africa’s border with Lesotho have been forsaken by the South African government, according to Dr Jane Buys, Free State Agriculture’s (FSA) safety risk analyst.

Skewed social media messages about elephants and conservation are leading to greater destruction of the environment, according to Deon Furstenburg, an independent wildlife scientist and consultant to Wildlife Ranching South Africa.

After announcing its withdrawal from the ‘Black Sea grain initiative’ on 29 October, Russia will rejoin a UN-backed agreement to allow the exporting of grain from Ukraine via a safe Black Sea corridor, with shipments expected to resume in the week of 31 October.