South Africa

Several organisations took part in protest action, organised by the Ficksburg community forum, Sechaba sa Ficksburg, that saw the closure of a number of roads in the district on Wednesday, 17 March.

There is probably truth in all allegations that South Africa’s multinational and smaller tobacco companies have been levelling against each other regarding their supposed involvement in the burgeoning illicit tobacco products trade in both South Africa and other parts of Africa.

Some of the main challenges facing farmers that are reported on in the issue of Farmer’s Weekly I read this morning is the poor-quality of roads, especially in the rural areas, the affordability of farm labour, and the scourge of stock theft. These are all well-known challenges to farmers. However, what might surprise you is that the issue of Farmer’s Weekly in which these problems are discussed was published in March 1917.

Business confidence has declined during the first quarter of 2021 according to the Rand Merchant Bank (RMB) and Bureau for Economic Research (BER) Business Confidence Index (BCI). The BCI had declined from 40 to 35 points.

Nematodes are far more prevalent and a more serious problem than farmers think. What is more, they cannot be eradicated, but only managed, according to Prof Driekie Fourie of Integrated Pest Management at North-West University (NWU).

The tariffs introduced on poultry imports in 2020 resulted in an increase in the consumer price of chicken. According to some industry role players, further tariff protection risked making this protein source unaffordable to the 40% of South Africans already regarded as poor.

In 2020, the South African economy recorded its most significant decline in annual economic activity since 1946.

New tractor sales continued their strong trajectory nationwide during February, a trend which has been evident since the beginning of the year. However, last month’s combine harvester sales were somewhat below those of February 2020.

There is a novel opportunity for South African farmers to enter the kiwiberry fruit market, which is relatively unknown locally. This is according to Wouter le Roux, owner of fresh produce export company It’sofresh.

Farmers in the Murraysburg district in the Western Cape are currently experiencing the most extensive outbreak of locusts in the area since February last year, covering an area of 10km by 20km, and spanning four farms.

Almost a third of South Africa’s population lives in remote rural areas on communal, subsistence agricultural land.

The South African grain industry is currently riddled with debates about the availability and credibility of market information, despite the fact that the available industry information is trustworthy.

With the Brent Crude oil price now trading at more than US$60/barrel (about R901,60/barrel), the South African agriculture sector can expect to bear the brunt of ongoing increases in fuel prices, and the prices of other crude-oil derivatives such as fertilisers, herbicides and pesticides.

With the level of the Kouga Dam now at below 7%, the Gamtoos Irrigation Board (GIB) has warned water users in the region that it cannot supply water adequately below the 3% water mark.

While the agriculture sector received a fair amount of attention in this year’s budget speech, which was recently tabled in Parliament by Minister of Finance Tito Mboweni, there was concern about government’s commitment to wealth creation.

The budget allocated to the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (agriculture department), which was tabled as part of the National Budget by Minister of Finance, Tito Mboweni in Parliament today (24 February) will require spending cuts on several cost lines and programmes.

With the Minister of Finance Tito Mboweni due to present his 2021/2022 National Budget Speech on Wednesday, 24 February, stakeholders in South Africa’s agriculture sector have expressed their expectations for this year’s budget.

A limited outbreak of African swine fever (ASF) on a farm near Potchefstroom earlier this month has been confirmed by the South African Pork Producers’ Organisation (SAPPO).

A recent call by South Africa’s Healthy Living Alliance (HEALA) for government to double the Health Promotion Levy (HPL) on sugar-sweetened beverages, commonly known as the sugar tax, has been met with disbelief and strong criticism by members of the sugar value chain.

Eskom recently announced an electricity tariff hike of nearly 16% that will be implemented in April. This announcement, along with the recent increase in the minimum wage of farmworkers and possible fuel increases, would put many producers under increasing pressure.