South Africa

As South Africans entered the festive season, meat inflation reached its highest level in 14 months at 10,5% year-on-year, making this a “very expensive braai season”, according to Paul Makube, senior agricultural economist at FNB Agri-Business.

Twenty-one indigenous veld goats were delivered to the AmaBhele kaJamangile Kingdom in the Maclear area of the Eastern Cape on Wednesday (13 December), as part of a joint venture between Chief Zwelothando Mabandla, AfriForum and the Southern African Agri Initiative (SAAI).

Members of the citrus industry have expressed concern about the 2023 export season, after producers failed to meet export targets for 2022.

The first-ever global assessment of the impact of livestock grazing, in which the University of Pretoria participated, has revealed the important role gazing plays in the ecology of dryland regions.

South Africa’s agriculture sector has bounced back to again be among the largest contributors to quarter-on-quarter (q/q) GDP growth in the third quarter of 2022.

Potatoes South Africa (Potatoes SA) has rejected recent claims that the implementation of import tariffs on French fries was driving up food prices and threatening food security in South Africa.

This year, World Soil Day aims to raise awareness of the importance of maintaining healthy ecosystems by addressing the growing challenges faced in soil management.

Politicians’ actions in South Africa are threatening food security in the only country on the continent that is self-sufficient in food production. This was according to Chris Schutte, CEO of Astral Foods, South Africa’s largest integrated poultry company.

Good and bad news awaits South African motorists in December with petrol prices expected to rise, offsetting an expected sharp drop in diesel prices.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.