Farming for Tomorrow

Biofuels are an important sustainable alternative to fossil-based fuels. However, caution is needed to ensure that water-efficient feedstocks are selected in water-scarce South Africa, says hydrologist Richard Kunz of the University of KwaZulu-Natal.

The Botswana Predator Conservation Trust is working with researchers to determine whether livestock predation can be prevented simply by painting ‘eyes’ on cattle’s rumps.

Through its ‘Enough’ movement, Elanco Animal Health aims to prove how innovation can help farmers produce more food without using more resources.

The University of the Free State’s meat traceability platform will enable farmers to track the growth and measurements of their animals from birth to slaughter. Glenneis Kriel reports.

The long-term objective of breeding ostriches according to scientific principles has been given a boost, thanks to research by Dr Marna Smith.

Nuclear energy has many beneficial applications. One is the potential, through the sterile insect technique, to suppress Eldana, a pest that causes significant economic losses to sugarcane farmers, as well as eradicate malaria from South Africa. Lloyd Phillips reports.

Dragon fruit has the potential to provide South African farmers with an easily propagated, fast-ripening alternative to fruit such as avocados.

Although still in its infancy, the Robot X project aims to boost production efficiency, says Glenneis Kriel.

The ARC’s Dr Ben Greyling and Frans Jordaan explain how ultrasound scanning allows a beef producer to select the best breeding animals to improve genetic carcass traits.

Dr Erika van Zyl discusses alternative manners in which to deal with parasites in smallstock.

Daan Hugo, managing director of CertiSure, says that while avoiding risk in the South African agricultural sector is out of the question, various risk management tools are available to help in the assessment and prioritisation of risks. Annelie Coleman reports.

Research by food scientist Dr Cindy Hunlun suggests that legislation about fruit juice labelling should be revised to reflect true nutritional value and health properties.