South Africa

Raging wildfires that have destroyed nearly 100 000ha in the western Free State since Sunday, 18 October, are being fanned by strong winds. The fires reportedly started on Sunday when service delivery protesters burned tyres on the R708 road between Hertzogville and Christiana.

According to DA MP Annette Steyn, protest action that took place in Senekal in the Free State, where two men accused of the murder of farm manager Brendin Horner appeared for their bail hearing in the Magistrate’s Court on Friday, 16 October, had been mostly peaceful.

While organised agriculture bodies have welcomed many of the actions and goals set out in the economic restructure and recovery plan announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa this week, they want more details on how it will be effectively implemented.

Police Minister Bheki Cele has undertaken to investigate the allegations of police involvement in the livestock theft that plague farmers in the eastern Free State. This was according to Herkie Viljoen, chairperson of the Bethlehem Agriculture Union and Security organisation.

Due to the ban on wine sales during the national lockdown to contain the COVID-19 pandemic, the South African wine industry has been left with an unprecedented oversupply of wine.

There have been calls for calm as tensions run high after a protest outside the Senekal Magistrate’s Court turned violent last week.

ZZ2, one of the largest farming businesses in South Africa, has vehemently denied reports that farmworkers were given an ultimatum by the company to either remain onsite during the COVID-19 lockdown period, or go home without pay.

The man who was arrested following the protest action outside the Senekal Magistrate’s Court earlier this week, will appear in the same court on Friday, 9 October on a charge of public violence and malicious damage to property.

The South African agriculture sector is advanced, creative and entrepreneurial. This was according to Dan Hennesy, vice president of the Land O’ Lakes member-owned, agricultural co-operative, based in Minnesota in the US.

As things stand, South Africa’s summer crop farmers who hope to benefit from the significant drop in the diesel price from midnight on Tuesday, 6 October, are unlikely to have their orders interrupted or delayed.

The case of the two suspects who appeared in the Senekal Magistrate’s Court in connection with the murder of Free State farm manager Brendin Horner, has been postponed to 16 October when their bail application will be heard, according to Brigadier Motantsi Makhele, spokesperson for the South African Police Service in the Free State.

Two suspects have been apprehended following the killing of Free State farm manager, Brendin Horner, and will appear in the Senekal Magistrate court on Tuesday, 6 October on a charge of murder.

Almost 900 farms will be advertised by the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (agriculture department) for release to the public.

The average level of many public and farm dams may currently be declining across much of South Africa’s summer rainfall region, but agriculture role players in these areas remain hopeful that forecasts for average to above-average rainfall during the 2020/2021 summer will replenish freshwater resources.

The positive growth trend in agricultural GDP so far this year, has failed to translate into an increase in employment in the sector.

The demand for sustainable agricultural products is increasing around the world. Now, a partnership between the South African wine industry and the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) has the potential to improve the local wine industry’s green credential, in order to meet this growing demand.

The higher margins made by retailers on fresh produce during the COVID-19 pandemic require an explanation, according to the ‘Essential Food Price Monitoring’ report by South Africa’s Competition Commission (CompCom).

Demand for honeybush tea has declined dramatically since the introduction of the COVID-19-related lockdown regulations, with an influx of new entrants to the industry adding to price pressure.

Beekeeping has offered a lifeline to many rural communities, as this essential service allowed them to generate an income during the COVID-19-related lockdown.

Eastern Cape Premier, Oscar Mabuyane, has called for the establishment of a provincial stock theft prevention forum by mid-October, following a meeting with the National Red Meat Producers’ Organisation (NERPO), during which the problem was highlighted.