Living with drought
Roelof Bezuidenhout, a Farmer's Weekly correspondent who farms near Steytlerville, is experiencing drought first-hand. He believes government will have to reconsider their drought aid if they want to keep farmers...
Start by supporting commercial farmers
Dr Reuel Khoza is a black farmer and chairperson of Aka Capital and the Nedbank Group. His family trust owns a 200ha export avocado and macadamia farm near Hazyview and...
Tide turns for African Farmers
Africa is the only continent which doesn't grow enough food to feed itself. But a revolution is underway that can change that, and it's affecting everyone from smallholer farmers to...
Demystifying ‘us’ and ‘them’
In the "us vs them" game no one wins, and the divide between the government and commercial farmers has largely been created by "stone-throwing politicians", says Agri Eastern Cape president...
How to speed up African food production
African countries need to implement home-grown policies to accelerate food production that are better suited to their state of economic growth and development, says Akin Adesina, former president of the...
Play the game
Like any business, farming is a game. To win, you have to adapt to meet changing circumstances. You also have to help other players - at least those who show...
Why holistic management needs better PR
Controversial Zimbabwean rancher Johann Zietsman has championed severe grazing and high-animal impact since 1995. He responds to our recent feature on Allan Savory’s revolutionary approach of combining high stocking rates...
Agriculture: not just feeding the nation
'It's time for agriculture to make a concerted effort at unity,' said Prof Mohammed Karaan, dean of the Agri-Sciences faculty at Stellenbosch University, at Kwanalu's 12th Annual Congress in Pietermaritzburg.
Is big business stealing Africa?
A new colonialism is on the rise, as governments and private companies grab land across Africa to feed and fuel demand in their own countries. They say their projects will...
The truth about labour
It's a tall order, but why not take the politics out of farm labour and concentrate on what will actually work, asks journalist and farmer Roelof Bezuidenhout.
Are farmers supporting illegal trade?
Recently there’s been a lot of buzz about the illegal practices of “off-market fresh produce agents”. But they can only function with farmers’ support, and it’s up to farmers to...
The good, the bad & the ugly of agriculture
As an ally of the commercial farming sector, Prof Mohammed Karaan’s election to President Zuma’s National Planning Committee gave renewed hope to commercial agriculture in South Africa. Addressing the inaugural...
Plant less, buy more
Wonderful opportunities are often disguised as insurmountable problems. Take the low maize prices and the fact that many producers are facing bankruptcy. There's an elegant and simple way out of...
Why biodiversity is everyone’s business
This year is the International Year of Biodiversity and it is time that we remind ourselves of the major impact that biodiversity has on our businesses says Dr Bob Scholes,...
Agriculture can only do so much
Threats of nationalisation and expropriation will eventually stop the farming clock, writes Roelof Bezuidenhout.
State to sieze SA’s land?
Though Government has assured farmers and other stakeholders that it doesn’t plan to nationalise farmland, its written policy implies otherwise. The consequences would be disastrous, writes Frans Cronje, deputy CEO...
Which way will the 2009 elections go?
Harald Pakendorf, seasoned political analyst and journalist, predicts that the ANC will lose its two-thirds majority in the coming election. Addressing some 500 delegates at the annual VinPro information day,...
Vulture massacre – mutimen attack
SA's vultures are facing extinction due to a roaring, yet unsustainable, vulture trade, with the birds being harvested quicker than they can breed. At this rate, species such as the...
Caution! GMO ahead
Director Leslie Liddel of Biowatch SA, a non-profit civil organisation, presents its case for the stricter regulation of GM crops and the labelling and separation of these from other products.
Looking into sugar’s future
The Agricultural Marketing Ministerial Review Committee's review of regulation in the sugar industry is in the final stages of completion. Rodger Stewart, chairperson of the SA Sugar Association, gives his...
