Why we should keep a close eye on vertical farming trends
A few months ago, I wrote about Zero Carbon Food, an urban, vertical farming initiative in London using hydroponic systems and LED technology in an old World War II bomb...
Innovation out of chaos
It was the Greek philosopher, Plato, who first said “necessity is the mother of invention”, but Albert Einstein later famously changed the phrase slightly to “necessity is the mother of...
Botswana beef exports: opportunities for SA farmers?
Preferential access to the EU should be fully exploited by Botswana’s beef producers and feedlots. More cattle need to be exported, with local demand being met by imports from South...
Why so angry, South Africa?
South Africa’s economy has stagnated, and by the time you read this, Standard and Poor’s may well have downgraded the country’s credit rating to...
A new app for sharing files over cellphone networks
Sending or sharing files over the Internet or cellphone networks can be a tedious affair, especially with a poor rural network connection.
Growing South Africa’s global fruit exports
The SA fruit and nut markets are driven by global supply and demand. Ezra Steenkamp, deputy director of trade research at the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF), and...
Land reform: exposing the myths
More and more evidence suggests that the actual demand for agricultural land in South Africa is not only being vastly inflated by those in power, but that government presently owns...
The DJI Phantom 3 Pro – stock thieves beware!
I recently took my DJI Phantom 3 Pro drone to a farmer’s day in Komga to demonstrate its capabilities.
Food for Africa: investing in the future
Multinational agricultural companies have the capacity and expertise to provide African countries with the inputs needed to grow farming operations – even in challenging climatic conditions, according to DuPont Pioneer...
How many people can we support?
The planet’s human population is growing at an alarmingly rapid pace, and nobody knows this better than farmers.
More & more farmers are using drones
As I’ve noted before, drones are growing in popularity amongst farmers.
Emerging farmers must be empowered
Willem de Chavonnes Vrugt, a commercial farmer from Setlagole in North West, argues that agricultural transformation is essential for the sustainability of the sector. He stresses, however, that government’s current...
Adopting a farmer-centric approach
I was shocked, but not altogether surprised, to learn recently that farmers’ incomes worldwide have remained significantly lower than the average income in most sectors, often by as much as...
Drought-stricken agriculture sector needs more help!
While Grain SA economist, Wandile Sihlobo, understands that South Africa is experiencing severe financial constraints, he believes that the government needs to prioritise, and increase, funding to its drought-stricken agriculture...
Does farming make you happy?
Considering the serious business of farming, the question, ‘does farming make you happy?’ may seem silly and perhaps superfluous.
South Africa, wake up and smell the water!
Increasing demand, pollution, poor management structures and crumbling sewerage infrastructure could spell catastrophe for South Africa’s freshwater supply. Prof Anthony Turton, professor at University of the Free State’s centre for...
How a Fitbit for cows can change dairy farms for the better
Wearable technology like the Fitbit is all the rage amongst tech-savvy fitness fanatics these days, and if a small Pakistani tech firm has its way, something similar may soon take...
No more cheap food
Food should not be cheap. It should be valued and appreciated because of the scarce resources used during the production process, and because of the effort and risk taken to...
Calling on our commercial and mega farmers
Developing South Africa’s emerging farmers will only be successful if the country’s commercial and mega farming sectors become involved, says Nick Serfontein, chairperson of the Sernick Group.
The right kind of growth in agriculture
Last week, I wrote about the crucial role that the development of rural infrastructure plays in creating the type of living environment that would attract young people to a career...
