South Africa

Grain SA has defended farmers’ role in South Africa’s food system to the South African Human Rights Commission, arguing that affordable food depends on a sustainable production base and an efficient value chain.

An unusually early-developing El Niño has sparked concerns that South Africa could face a hotter- and drier-than-normal 2026/27 summer. However, experts say it is still too early to predict the full extent of the climate phenomenon’s impact on the country’s agriculture sector.

While the Department of Agriculture is preparing to roll out its new vaccination strategy against highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI), industry experts say its success will depend on rigorous surveillance to detect and monitor the virus.

As international demand for rooibos continues to grow and new export opportunities emerge, industry leaders say protecting the product's geographical origin will be critical to ensuring its long-term value and supporting South African producers.

The Professional Hunters' Association of South Africa (PHASA) has issued updated best-practice guidelines aimed at preventing the spread of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) while ensuring hunting operations can continue without placing unnecessary burdens on the industry.

At a media briefing on 9 July, following negotiations with the Southern African Agri Initiative (Saai), Sakeliga, and Free State Agriculture, newly appointed Minister of Agriculture Willie Aucamp announced a settlement allowing the private sector to import and administer foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) vaccines.

Roads and bridges have largely been restored after the Western Cape floods earlier this year, but Ceres and Witzenberg fruit growers are still grappling with widespread damage to orchards, vineyards, irrigation infrastructure, and pump stations, as well as topsoil losses.

The 2026 Agroprocessing Convention & Expo, held on 2 and 3 July in Ekurhuleni, Gauteng, focused on progress made in the local industry since the inaugural event last year while identifying priorities for the next phase of growth across the province's agro-processing value chain.

The spaza shops in South Africa and its township economy present the agriculture industry with a huge untapped market worth hundreds of billions of rands each year.

As African swine fever (ASF) and foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) outbreaks have slowed significantly, pork producers are rebuilding their herds, and healthy margins have returned. But, while the disease crisis has eased, rising imports and the prospect of higher feed costs are emerging as the industry’s next major challenges.

The closing date for entries into the 2026 South African Agricultural Awards has been extended to 31 July 2026, it was announced during a stakeholder breakfast briefing held in Midrand on 2 July 2026.

Load-shedding may have ended more than two years ago, but South African farmers remain trapped in an electricity crisis. With soaring tariffs, deteriorating distribution infrastructure, and policies that discourage independent power generation, the cost and reliability of electricity have emerged as growing threats to agricultural profitability, food security, and export competitiveness.

From 29 June to 3 July, the Mohair Empowerment Trust (MET), in partnership with the African Enterprise Network, hosted its Phase 5 Training Programme at Grootfontein College of Agriculture near Middelburg in the Eastern Cape.

Land reform beneficiaries in northern KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) received a major boost earlier this week when Minister of Land Reform and Rural Development Mzwanele Nyhontso handed over title deeds and farming equipment at an event in the Mthonjaneni Local Municipality.

Farmers and market agents scored a significant legal victory after the North West High Court dismissed the City of Matlosana’s application to appeal an earlier ruling that stripped it of control over funds generated by the Matlosana National Fresh Produce Market in Klerksdorp.

The rapid evolution of drone technology is creating new possibilities for South African agriculture, but widespread adoption will depend on convincing data, practical support, and an enabling regulatory environment before drones become mainstream farming tools.

South African livestock producers will soon have an additional route to access foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) vaccines after government approved a supplementary private veterinary procurement channel that will allow registered private veterinarians to obtain vaccines directly from authorised importers.

Transnet and the Western Cape Government have said that targeted operational interventions and stronger collaboration are beginning to yield results at the Port of Cape Town, even though it was placed last in the latest global port rankings.

South African farmers will receive a much-needed boost to their production costs from 1 July, with the latest fuel price adjustments delivering one of the biggest diesel price reductions in recent years.

The Department of Agriculture is developing a comprehensive National Beekeeping Strategy aimed at tackling some of the biggest threats facing the country’s honey and pollination industries, including bee diseases, declining forage, weak regulatory frameworks, and limited market access.