South Africa

The Johannesburg Stock Exchange’s (JSE) location differential system was the main topic of discussion at Grain SA’s three annual meetings held in South Africa’s winter rainfall regions.

South Africa’s summer grain farmers have planted 180 000ha less maize than originally intended for the current production season, according to the Crop Estimates Committee’s (CEC) preliminary area estimate for summer grain crops.

A number of officials in the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform (DRDLR) are still being investigated for fraud and corruption relating to farm allocations for a project that ended in 2010, according to the DRDLR.

It is expected that communal farmers will be hardest hit by ongoing drought conditions across the country and subsequent lack of grazing, according to Gerhard Schutte, CEO of the Red Meat Producers’ Organisation (RPO).

The Black Tobacco Farmers’ Association (BTFA), launched in Pretoria on Thursday, aims to protect and prioritise the interests of black tobacco farmers to ensure their continued development and sustainability in the industry.

The highest price achieved at the annual Cape Premier Yearling Sale held in Cape Town yesterday was R4 million for an unnamed filly, one of the last progeny of one of South Africa’s top Thoroughbred sires, the late Captain Al.

The South African Police Service (SAPS) has appealed to the public for any information that could lead to the arrest of the intruders that butchered 30 sheep on the farm Goedgedacht near Standerton in Mpumalanga over the weekend.

More than 250 delegates are attending the annual Combined Congress of soil, crop production, weed and horticultural sciences, underway at the University of the Free State in Bloemfontein until Friday.

The rapid response by both government and the private sector to the recent foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak in the Vhembe district in Limpopo has been praised by role players in the livestock value chain.

The Free State consists of many economic sectors, but agriculture is the most important in terms of food security for everybody, including politicians and government officials.

Vinpro’s chairperson, Anton Smuts, has called on wine producers and winery directors to stop selling bulk wine at “pathetically low” prices.

The 3,9% increase in total tractor sales from 6 462 units in 2017 to 6 714 units in 2018, has been met with surprise in some quarters, as many parts of South Africa’s 2018/2019 summer grain and oilseed production areas experienced unusually dry conditions in spring and summer last year.

Numerous health benefits have been ascribed to rooibos tea, making it not only a firm favourite among South African tea drinkers, but also across the world.

The recent confirmation of a foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreak among cattle in the Vhembe District in Limpopo has sparked strong reaction from the livestock sector, along with unfounded panic among consumers.

Free State Agriculture (FSA) expressed its shock about a shooting incident in the province in which three lives were lost.

Many factors influence the current forecasts for the South Africa maize crop and maize prices, and the current drought conditions, in especially North West and some parts of the Free State, should not be compared to the conditions and prices experienced in 2015/2016, according to Wilbie Venter, a grain trader at Unigrain based in Randfontein.

The third Goat Agribusiness Conference was recently held at the Durban Botanic Gardens and was well-attended by prospective and existing goat farmers.

According to The Economist's Pocket World in Figures, South Africa has the highest rate of unemployment among young people in the world.

Stand a chance to be one of 100 young agricultural enthusiasts from around the world to attend the 2019 Youth Ag Summit to be held in Brasília, Brazil from 4 to 6 November this year.

Government is misusing the land question to garner votes for the upcoming election, which is detrimental for South Africa as a whole and the economy in particular, according to FF+ leader, Dr Pieter Groenewald.