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Swimming against the tide of low investor confidence in South Africa's land reform processes, Futuregrowth Asset Management has created a R3 billion agri fund, and believes it has a model for investing in failed farms. Fund manager James Howard explained how it works to Sean Christie.

Amadlelo Agri (Pty) Ltd, an empowerment company driven by the expertise of 70 dairy farmers from the Eastern Cape and KZN, has attracted much attention for establishing commercially viable dairy projects in the former Ciskei - one of the few examples of truly viable agricultural development in the country.

Known as an 'economic spy', Africa Project Access consultant Paul Runge has an eagle's view of development in Africa.He shared some of his insights with Robyn Joubert at the Africa Investor Agribusiness Investment Summit in Durban on 31 August.

Government's attitude towards our water crisis seems to be changing from denial to tentative action. This is largely thanks to the activism of a few determined men and women. Sean Christie spoke to three of them and found that each has learned unique lessons from agriculture that can help solve the current water crisis.

After describing her communications department as “incapable of writing a letter”, agriculture minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson has hired the services of slick corporate propagandist Rams Mabote.

Agri Eastern Cape supports sustainable and responsibly executed land reform measures. It accepts that attempts at land reform by previous governments have, almost without exception, been unsuccessful, with a disastrous impact on individuals and communities.

Richard Tate, a former top farmer and leader in Zimbabwean farming circles,says it’s time for South African consumers and business people to realise that failed land reform will seriously affect the whole economy. Roelof Bezuidenhout spoke to him.

The views and expectations of South Africa’s farmers are being misrepresented by some groups and, all too often, the media. KwaZulu-Natal Agricultural Union (Kwanalu) president Robin Barnsley says the commercial farming community must set about marketing the truth about themselves. He spoke to Lloyd Phillips.

Nobuntu Mazeka is an organic subsistence farmer and a staunch defender of her community’s way of life. But living in the vicinity of the proposed mine at Xolobeni, she finds herself up against two exceedingly tough opponents, an Australian mining company, and her very own government. Robyn Joubert visited her.

Many concerns, such as immigration and unemployment, affect the environment in which the ANC will have to make critical choices. But, speaking at the 2010 Agricultural Business Chamber Congress, emeritus professor of political science Willie Breytenbach said there are still reasons to stay positive and opportunities for constructive contributions by agriculture. One such opportunity will be the Green Paper on land reform.

Father and son team Allan and Kevin Penderis from the Natal Midlands have developed the first legitimate, independent certification for free-range dairy in South Africa. Kevin tells Robyn Joubert that it couldn’t have come at a better time.

In 2007 the Eastern Cape government established Asgisa Eastern Cape Pty Ltd to get rural development in the province off the ground. The main focus being large-scale maize production in the former Transkei. Now, after their first harvest, Mike Burgess asked Asgisa Eastern Cape CEO Simpiwe Somdyala how the project has fared, and discovers that it often tends to be a mixed bag of success.