Opinion

Feeding the global population nutritiously and sustainably by 2030 will require unprecedented innovation and coordination by all stakeholders, according to a report by the World Economic Forum’s System Initiative on Shaping the Future of Food Security and Agriculture.

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.

The socio-economic dynamics of an ever-growing and increasingly globalised human population are placing increasing demands on the world’s livestock producers. German Agricultural Society president, Carl-Albrecht Bartmer, explored these issues at the opening of EuroTier 2016.

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.

The destruction of farming infrastructure as the result of an influx of elephants to Namibia’s north-western commercial farming region is an ever-increasing problem, according to Namibian Livestock Producers’ Organisation (LPO) chairperson, Piet Gouws.

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

For South Africa to continue making a significant contribution to poverty alleviation in sub-Saharan Africa, the agricultural sector needs to thrive. According to Hamlet Hlomendlini, senior economist at Agri SA, this can be achieved if government, businesses, policymakers, civil society and farmers stand together and put politics aside for the betterment and transformation of the industry.

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.

According to Jannie de Villiers, CEO of Grain SA, South Africans have learned a number of valuable lessons from the drought, with the single most important lesson being that the country’s farmers have the ability to overcome challenges.