South Africa

The Western Cape’s agricultural harvest hangs in the balance as the province battles floods, gale force winds and low temperatures.

Astral Foods is navigating the turbulence of load-shedding and other challenges in the 2023 fiscal year.

South Africa’s citrus industry is set to receive a boost in quality as stricter laws for propagation are tabled. The Citrus Improvement Scheme(CIS) will soon be promulgated after undergoing a two-decade process of consultation in the industry.

The Black Rhino Range Expansion Project (BRREP) has translocated 230 rhinos to create 15 new black rhino populations on sites in South Africa and Malawi over the past 20 years.

South Africa’s organised agricultural structures are extremely concerned about evidence that a huge proportion of veldfires that occurred in the country so far this year were caused wilfully and deliberately.

Following three consecutive quarters of depressed sentiment, the Agbiz/IDC Agribusiness Confidence Index rebounded by 6 points from the second quarter to the neutral 50-point mark in the third quarter.

Entrepreneurs from all over the continent and government officials came together to discuss how to harness Africa's rich biodiversity and indigenous plant resources to create opportunities for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) for a more sustainable economy at the African Bio Trade Festival from 14 to 16 September.

Food safety and proper food handling at all stages of the value chain are paramount in ensuring that contamination and the spread of foodborne diseases such as listeriosis is avoided in South Africa.

Nematode populations in South Africa appear to be increasing in both prevalence and species type. Farmers are therefore cautioned to implement full integrated pest management strategies to prevent total crop losses.

The cold conditions in various parts is not expected to cause big agriculture-related losses for now.

The Simbra bull JM 18 022 (‘JacMar Buffel’) recently set a new South African record for the breed when he was sold for R550 000.

About 600 000ha in the North West have been lost to veld fires since the beginning of August. According to Naude Pienaar, assistant general manager of Agri North West, a large percentage of these fires had been caused by arson. Four people had also lost their lives in the veld fires.

The primary focus of insurance is the protection of property, products and people. But insurance, especially in the grain storage sector, can be complicated. This topic was discussed during the Grain and Oilseed Value Chain Symposium panel discussion recently hosted by Agbiz Grain.

Over the past two decades, increasing consumer demand for a reliable and consistently safe supply of food products have necessitated that food sources should be traceable.

Access to available grain stock, the risk of volume concentration, price convergence and failing infrastructure were some of the challenges that were highlighted during the panel discussion of the second day of the Grain and Oilseeds Value Chain Symposium held in Pretoria.

Step Up 2A Start Up, the Primestars youth entrepreneurship initiative, celebrated its ninth year of operation at the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE) on Tuesday 5, September.

During the first day of the Agbiz Grain Symposium, a panel discussed the various aspects that influence the sustainability of the grain storage sector in light of current and future demands for storage, infrastructural challenges and return on investment made by elevator owners.

The South African Poultry Association (SA Poultry) is concerned about the impact that highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) outbreaks might have on poultry producers and its effect on the supply chain.

The annual scourge of veldfires was continuing in the Free State, with numerous major and widespread fires actively burning on Sunday night in the areas of Smithfield and Reddersburg, as well Steynsrus and Ventersburg, among others.

The Competition Commission has approved the sale of meat supplier Tomis Group to retailer Pick n Pay. The acquisition is expected to have little effect on the industry or prices for livestock.