Beware! The locusts are swarming this summer
South Africa looks to be heading for another large-scale brown locust outbreak this season, according to Dr Gerhard Vedoorn of CropLife South Africa and Dr Roger Price of the Agricultural Research Council....
Preventing and fighting veld fires
Fire protection associations play an integral part in managing fire risk during the dry winter season. Pieter Dempsey spoke to Johann Breytenbach, general manager of the Free State Umbrella Fire...
Breaking the cycle of child labour in agriculture
Across the world, child labour is practised more in agriculture than in any other sector. This is despite the numerous hazards involved in farm work, including unprotected exposure to chemicals,...
Varied tech solutions required for small-scale farming
The dual nature of South Africa’s agricultural landscape precludes a one-size-fits-all approach to technology solutions. Small-scale farmers have limited budgets and challenges that cannot be solved without taking their distinctive...
Is data the new soil in agri?
With today’s rapidly evolving digital technology, farmers have many options, but at a high cost. Discerning between the hype and the useful is therefore crucial to buying the right tools...
The role of farmers during the COVID-19 crisis
The COVID-19 pandemic had brought new appreciation for the pivotal role that South Africa’s agriculture sector plays in the provision of healthy, sufficient and affordable food, according to Derek Mathews,...
Making agriculture more bee-friendly
With the majority of food crops being pollinated by bees, dwindling colonies pose a threat to agriculture. But while pesticides play a major role in declining bee numbers, monocultures and...
Get ready to profit from plant- and insect-based proteins
Across the world, food consumption patterns are undergoing vast changes, necessitating changes in the agricultural landscape. Lindi Botha spoke to Mark Hassenkamp, agri-tech adviser to Blue Horizon Corporation, which holds...
Biodiversity: a valuable ally for the farmer
Caring for the indigenous vegetation on a farm not only helps protect plant species from extinction, but benefits the production of crops in several crucial ways. Glenneis Kriel spoke to...
Dealing with the data produced by precision farming
Erik de Vries, a director at precision farming consultancy Agri Technovation, says the number and diversity of data points generated by precision agriculture technologies require capable central platforms to allow...
Corteva Agriscience: Relentless innovation, bold leadership
In tackling the problems that affect the lives and the livelihoods of millions of people, there is no room for mediocrity and no time to be timid.
How to keep Africa growing in the face of climate change
No continent will be struck as severely by climate change as Africa. Due to the continent’s limited adaptive capacity, exacerbated by widespread poverty, climate change is a grave threat to...
