Glenneis Kriel
Glenneis Kriel is a senior agricultural journalist for Farmer's Weekly. Her ventures into agricultural journalism started out by chance, more than 20 years ago, when someone suggested she freelance for the magazine, which turned out to be her dream job. Her passion is to write stories that inspire greatness and make people evaluate the way they are doing things.
Breeding top Angora goats in the Southern Cape
While most Angora producers in the Southern Cape have given up farming these animals, brothers Jasper and Leon van der Westhuizen have achieved exceptional results. They spoke to Glenneis Kriel about the local environmental conditions and their management techniques.
Thousands of jobs threatened by Ashton canning factory closure
Suppliers of canning fruit to Langeberg and Ashton Foods have been placed in an impossible position after Tiger Brands gave them less than 60 days to come up with more than R200 million to prevent the closure of the factory.
Records abound at South Africa’s national Ankole auction
The Ankole Cattle Breeders’ Society of South Africa’s national auction on 18 June raked in more than R21 million in total for the 80 lots on offer.
Agribusiness confidence still positive
Rising input costs, biosecurity concerns, interest rate hikes, intensified geopolitical risks and ongoing weakness in municipal service delivery are taking their toll on agribusinesses, according to the Agbiz/IDC Agribusiness Confidence Index released on 13 June.
Logistical challenges accelerate plum industry fall
Plum production has become economically unviable with the majority of farmers suffering a loss over the past two seasons.
Organic fruit production almost non-existent in South Africa
While organic fruit farming and the demand for organic produce have been growing steadily around the world, South African producers have been slow to adopt this style of production.
Mixed reaction to South Africa’s latest fuel price increases
The extension of the temporary relief of R1,50/l on the fuel levy by government to try and ease the pressure on South Africans following fuel price increases on Wednesday (1 June), has been widely welcomed.
SA citrus exported through Maputo port again
Following years of struggles, South African producers again started exporting citrus through the Port of Maputo in Mozambique in May.
Why humidity is crucial in climate control
By manipulating environmental conditions, and paying equal attention to temperature and humidity, greenhouse growers can improve the quality of their crops and maximise yields.
‘SA well-positioned to become leader in cannabis production’
South Africa has the potential to position itself as a global player on the global cannabis market. This was according to Stephen Murphy, CEO of Prohibition Partners, speaking during an online media briefing hosted by the European Delegation to South Africa.
South Africans set for another fuel price shock in June
While it is still too early to predict what the fuel price increase would be for June, current prices are seriously undervalued, which points to another major price hike.
Locust outbreaks in South Africa under control for now
The worst of South Africa’s locust season seems to be over thanks to cooler climatic conditions. According to various reports, only Murraysburg in the Western Cape and areas surrounding Gqeberha and Sutterheim in the Eastern Cape are still fighting small, scattered swarms.
Talks between Sundays River Valley workers and farmers deadlocked
The farmworker strike in the Sundays River Valley region is continuing after the parties involved failed to reach an agreement during a meeting in Gqeberha on Thursday (5 May).
Fruit Logistica attendance positive for fruit industry
The recent Fruit Logistica Berlin 2022 exhibition in Germany hosted 40 000 buyers and trade visitors from about 130 countries, as well as 2 000 exhibitors from 87 countries.
Lives, property threatened in Sundays River Valley protest
Famers in the Sundays River Valley region of the Eastern Cape are fearing for their lives and those of their farmworkers after a violent protest broke out in the area about a week ago.
Inquiry into fresh produce sector’s competitiveness
The Competition Commission (CompCom) will be conducting an inquiry into South Africa’s fresh produce industry to investigate concerns about issues that may prevent, lessen or distort competition on that market.
Authorities still counting the cost of flood damage in KZN
The extensive flood damage to infrastructure in KwaZulu-Natal following the recent torrential rain is a severe blow for the province’s agricultural industry.
Water rights litigation creates uncertainty for SA farmers
The recent Constitutional Court decision on the transferability and trading of water rights will create uncertainty and erode investor confidence in the agricultural sector, stakeholders have said.
No end in sight for logistical problems at Port of Cape Town
Stakeholders in the fruit and wine industries are doing everything in their power to address logistical challenges and bottlenecks at South Africa’s ports, specifically the Port of Cape Town, with the situation currently being exacerbated by the Russia-Ukraine conflict.
South African cane farmers welcome delay in sugar tax increase
The South African Cane Growers’ Association (SA Canegrowers) has welcomed the recent announcement of a 12-month delay in the increasing of the Health Promotion Levy (HPL) from 2,21c/g to 2,31c/g of sugar that exceeds 4g/100ml in sugary beverages, but said the tax should rather be “scrapped altogether”.
