South Africa

Citrus black spot (CBS) topped discussions during the recent bilateral meeting between Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Tina Joemat-Pettersson, and German Minister of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection Ilse Aigner.

The Mpumalanga Department of Agriculture, Rural Development and Land Administration (DARDLA) recently announced the development of 248ha of land over the next five years into a new fresh produce hub for the province that will cost some R1 billion.

The public and interested parties are invited to attend the public hearings on the Agricultural Produce Marketing Agencies Bill 2013, published in the Government Gazette on 28 March.

The Eastern Cape Department of Rural Development and Agrarian Reform recently allocated R15 million to the supply of livestock and improvement of farming skills for emerging farmers in the province.

Farmers have welcomed a revision of the South African Weather Service’s (SAWS) classification system for severe weather-related hazards.

Good growing conditions in many wine growing regions has seen the wine grape crop estimate for 2013 increase somewhat and expectations are that the 2013 harvest, although smaller in some areas, will surpass the 2012 harvest to become one of the three biggest wine grape harvests in history.

South Africa needs to increase its energy supply drastically, because this is the biggest issue preventing the country from moving forward, Agbiz’s Lindie Stroebel told delegates at a meeting of the Agri Business Chamber Eastern Cape in Port Elizabeth recently.

Producers in the summer grain production areas have started harvesting the 2012/2013 grain crop, but yields were fluctuating dramatically from region to region.

The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) is confident that foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is no longer prevalent in SA.

Provincial conservation organisation, Ezemvelo KwaZulu-Natal Wildlife, has shot and killed a three metre Nile crocodile (Crocodylus niloticus) that it said had long plagued residents along the lower reaches of the Umgeni River.

Multi-national energy and chemical company, Sasol, recently committed to two separate collaboration agreements to help conserve South Africa’s stressed freshwater resources.

A consortium of over 5 600 emerging and commercial sugarcane growers have purchased a transport division of Unitrans in a deal which puts the multi-national logistics company’s Amatikulu transport depot in growers’ hands.

The Droughtmaster beef cattle breed was officially introduced to South African stud and commercial beef breeders on 24 April in the Vryburg district.

South Africans should be encouraged to buy more locally produced food by making it easy for them to distinguish between local and imported products in supermarkets.

“We all agree land reform is necessary, we just don’t always agree on the method that should be followed,” said Agbiz CEO Dr John Purchase at a Standard Bank business breakfast during the recent Bien Donné Agri Cape Week in Paarl.

Launched in 2011, the Bollinger Exceptional Wine Service Award is aimed at recognising and enhancing the calibre of local sommeliers and wine service staff.

Fallow state land and agreements with Brics countries could result in many business opportunities for innovative farmers.

The Competition Commission (CC) has dropped investigations into irregularities in the cut flower industry.

Despite a vote of confidence in the integrity of locally produced red meat, serious warnings were issued during the debate about producer and consumer relationships at the Bien Donné Agri Cape Week.

A play on words resulted in the Constitutional Court ruling against Agri SA’s landmark test case to determine the expropriation provisions in the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (MPRDA).