Crops

Case IH has launched its Austoft 8010 and 8810 sugar cane harvesters on the Africa and Middle Eastern markets.

Integrity seems to mean different things to different people. But one cannot afford to compromise on it; if people are not held to account for wrongdoing, society and business can suffer profound damage.

Long-term food security is set to suffer if the scourge of soil erosion is not brought under control. Dan Pennock, a professor in soil science at the University of Saskatchewan in Canada, discusses the extent of the problem and the importance of good soil management.

Husqvarna is known the world over for the toughness of its zero-turn lawnmowers.

Fickle power supply and ever-increasing tariffs are spurring South Africa’s agriculture sector to look at alternative sources of electricity. Jacobus Treurnich, the land rights manager of G7 Renewable Energies, spoke to Jeandré van der Walt about wind farms and the opportunities that farmers will have to rent out their land for wind-generated power.

There are many signs that both the supply and quality of water in South Africa are likely to decrease. This poses a host of challenges for the country’s farmers.

Your send-off of departing staff conveys a clear and lasting message about the company to those who remain, and ripples well beyond the boundaries of the organisation.

Natural selection is pivotal in adapting livestock farming to climate change in Africa and beyond, says Prof Charles T Kadzere of the Eastern Cape Department of Rural Development and Agrarian reform’s Dohne Agricultural Development Institute.

In today’s world, surrounded by ‘fake news’ and hampered by our own brains, we need to know how to separate the facts from the lies.

John Deere’s new PIN code locking system helps deter the theft of valuable GreenStar in-cab displays and StarFire satellite receivers.

To be truly effective, biosecurity has to be part of the farm’s ‘culture’, so that every employee and visitor is motivated to adhere to the procedures.

Kubota South Africa is committed to working with its customers to adapt to industry trends. One market it has specifically focused on is orchards, with a range of open-station and cab narrow tractors.

Increased use of technology and automation in agriculture carries with it the risk that certain farm jobs will become redundant. However, according to a new report published by the World Bank, ‘The Changing Nature of Work’, the use of certain digital technologies could make a meaningful contribution to improving employment opportunities in agriculture, especially in developing economies.

Investing in an end-to-end employee health, risk and well-being solution can result in considerable savings for the employer, while ensuring that valued staff members are retained.

Most goods lose value over time. Boats rot, patents expire, machinery wears out, and computers become obsolete. Depreciation attempts to estimate and record this loss of value.

AGCO has acquired the forage division of the Lely Group, a leading manufacturer of balers and loader wagons in Europe.

Since South African agriculture converted from control boards to the free market system in the 1990s, farmers have had to learn how to contend with extreme volatility on commodity markets. According to Silotrat’s Werner Rossouw, hedging is a valuable tool that maize farmers can use to reduce the risk of fluctuating prices. However, in order to benefit from the system, they must learn the rules of the game.

A farm can only produce according to its potential and what’s invested in it, says Roelof Bezuidenhout.

Obtaining environmental authorisation with the help of technical consultants prior to expanding farming operations on virgin soil will help farmers avoid prosecution that could lead to hefty fines or even jail time, writes James Brand, a natural resources and environment senior associate at law firm ENSafrica.

Gaps in insurance cover can be addressed by structured risk financing policies that allow for the funding of risks not feasibly covered by traditional policies.