Letter from the editor

A survey by Agri SA and its provincial affiliates has started to lift the lid on the extent of corruption that occurred during the allocation and spending of money intended to support drought relief efforts.

During May, I visited both the NAMPO Harvest Day agricultural show in Bothaville and the Royal Show in Pietermaritzburg, and one thing that was abundantly clear to me at both these events was the enthusiasm for farming amongst young people.

South Africa has long traded on its self-proclaimed status of being the gateway for foreign investment into Africa.

The most frustrating aspect of the current status of the land reform process is the total lack of any clear plan or vision for the road ahead.

I was recently paid a visit by an Eastern Cape farmer who is an ardent reader of the Farmer’s Weekly. You might know him better as the secretary-general of the ANC.

Every time I hear the news of another farm attack, I immediately stop and phone my parents to reassure myself that they are safe.

The development of agriculture in Africa was high on the agenda at this year’s SIMA Paris International Agribusiness Show in France.

Today we celebrate Farmer’s Weekly’s 106th birthday. This is not only a celebration of 106 years of publishing, but of over a century of commercial farming in Southern Africa.

I read an article a few weeks ago about one of Elon Musk’s – Tesla and SpaceX CEO – latest projects: the development of neural lace, an invention that would add ‘a digital layer of intelligence to our brain’.

The campaign that flung President Donald Trump into the White House introduced the world to the concept of alternative facts.

Whenever I see a rhino these days, I wonder if these remarkable creatures will still be around when I reach old age.

Humanity has always survived by adapting, but it seems to me that the next decade or two will require it to change more and faster than ever before.