CATEGORIES

Hauling In A Full Net: Reaping The Benefits Of Processed Fish

As local and global governments deal with the full impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, producers are now more than ever searching for new options for expanding their businesses. That said, farming and value addition to produce does not have to be limited to landlocked food sources.

Grow Produce Year-round With Tunnels And Greenhouses

Climate change is an inescapable reality and can wreak havoc in open-field production systems that rely on the right weather patterns to produce good yields. For this reason, many producers worldwide have turned to growing crops in tunnels or greenhouses. These production systems offer protection from changing weather patterns, allowing them to grow crops throughout the year.

Saving Soil: Harnessing The Microbiome

We live in unprecedented times.

Summer Grain Production: A Producer's Perspective

The 2020 planting season for producers in the summer rainfall areas is here and most of them are looking forward to the first summer rains so that they can plant their crops. FarmBiz spoke to Jaco Minnaar from the farm Uitsny near Henneman about the new season. Jaco is vice-chairperson of Agri SA and currently serves on the Senwes board.

Electronic Auctions: The New Normal?

The South African livestock industry has suffered a tremendous setback with challenges posed to physical auctions. However, the industry is nothing if not resilient. The first ban on livestock auctions was imposed during the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in 2019.

Oxygen Types That Damage Crops In Extreme Weather Conditions

Oxygen is best known as a life-giving gas without which life as we know it, would not be possible.

Asia's Maize Imports Likely To Grow

In 2019, the Asian maize market was finally on the rise to reach US$204,4 billion after two years of decline. The total consumption indicated buoyant growth from 2009 to 2019. Its value increased at an average annual rate of 5,1% over the last decade.

Cultivated grazing: Fertiliser is the key to success

Nowadays everything in agriculture has to be done on a larger scale. Cultivated grazing has also become a science, with producers forced to think bigger to get more out of their grazing – all at the most economical cost.

Industry Giants Comment On Special Adjustment Budget

Prof Johan Willemse, an independent agricultural economist, says the supplementary budget delivered by the minister of finance on 24 June was a real shocker. According to him, the government is spending an additional R145 billion on the COVID-19 issue. The real issue, however, is a record budget shortfall due to the economic meltdown, with wrong policy choices and corruption on the cards.

Rethinking The Conversion Process Of Poultry Litter To Biogas

The poultry industry is generally comprised of broiler chicken production, egg production, day-old chick suppliers and other poultry. While micro-enterprise businesses are gaining prominence as a means to address the challenges of job creation, economic growth and equity, the industry has future challenges concerning poultry litter management.

The Secret To Restoring Nutrient Density In Food

Over the past 60 years, scientists have noticed alarming changes in the nutrient values of the food we eat. A popular article, Mineral Depletion of Foods

Milk And Microbes: A Match Made In Heaven

Fermented milk has been part of human history for a very long time and is a versatile product made in various regions around the world. By fermenting milk, the product is enhanced to be more beneficial than the original unfermented product. Any type of milk can be fermented, although the milk of cows and goats is the most popular. Some of the benefits of fermented milk include enhanced digestibility, as well as a higher nutritional value in the form of added probiotics, vitamins, minerals and amino acids. It also preserves products for a longer time, whereas unfermented and unprocessed milk usually has a very short shelf life.

How Young Vineyards Can Survive Climate Change

By choosing the right cultivars and adapting their irrigation regimes in young vineyards, winegrowers may mitigate the expected effect of climate change in coming years. This is according to Dr Hanlé Theron, who recently obtained her doctorate in viticulture from Stellenbosch University.

Hanging Tough: Local Wine Cultivars Adapt To Climate Change

South Africa’s road to success in the cultivation of vines, and more specifically the wine industry, has been paved with many stones since the first bottle of wine was produced by Jan van Riebeeck on 2 February 1659.

An Overview Of Canola Production In South Africa

In South Africa, canola is predominantly produced as a rainfed winter crop in the Western Cape – especially in the southern, Overberg, and Swartland regions.

MIRAVIS® Duo controls early blight (Alternaria solani) on potatoes

Potato early blight is caused by the fungus, Alternaria solani L. First observed in South Africa in the early 1900s, the disease causes severe premature defoliation late in the season, which negatively impacts overall yield by reducing the plant’s photosynthetic capacity.

Bush thickening and encroachment

Infectious bush thickening (BT) and bush encroachment (BE) are caused by the densification of alien and indigenous woody shrub and tree species, such as Senegalia mellifera (black thorn), Vachellia species (Senegalia and Vachellia were previously known as Acacia spp) and Prosopis (mesquite).

Getting to grips with hygiene practices in dairy processing facilities

Food safety and quality dairy products go hand in hand. During processing, milk products can be contaminated in many ways, which is why the South African dairy industry adheres to strict regulations to protect both the industry and dairy consumers.

The Tale Of Philip's Tunnel

South Africa’s first irrigation system can be traced to the Eastern Cape or, to be more specific, the Gamtoos Valley, which is home to the Loerie, Hankey and Patensie villages.

Invasive Plants And Soil Health

Invasive plant species are those that have been introduced into a specific area, and that displace and outcompete indigenous species or negatively influence the growth and production potential of ‘beneficial’ alien species.

Quality And Service Excellence Ensure Success

Denton Osler and his wife, Margie, started Denmar Dairies in the early 1980s. By then they had realized that farming on the farm Ettrick, just outside Fouriesburg in the Eastern Free State, where he farmed alongside his father Douglas, simply did not have the potential to be sustainable.

Tips To Ward Off Olive Trunk Diseases

New research by a recent Ph.D. graduate of Stellenbosch University (SU), has shed light on what olive tree farmers can do to curb olive trunk diseases in their orchards.

Legalising Medical Cannabis In South Africa

The term ‘cannabis’ refers to plants in the genus Cannabis. The three most recognised species are Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica and Cannabis ruderalis.

Urban Farming: Is It Financially And Spatially Feasible?

The term ‘urban farming’ paints a picture of city dwellers attempting to grow their own food in their backyard vegetable gardens, investing large amounts of money, time and water in their new projects, only to discover that store-bought produce is often of a higher quality, cheaper and require little to no effort in comparison.

Global Herb Production Trends

The term ‘herb’ is used specifically in reference to an aromatic plant’s leaves. Herbs can broadly be defined as plants used primarily for adding aromatic flavour to food. Herbs are also a popular ingredient in other gastronomic products such as condiments, seasonings and teas.

Strategies For Maintaining Minimum Pesticide Residue Levels

Ever since the term ‘biosecurity’ took a front seat on the global ecological train, consumer demand has increased for greater volumes of quality food that is free from pesticide residue. This has placed a fundamental focus on how classic or synthetic pesticides are used and on finding ways to manage their residues.

Business Trends In A Post-Covid-19 World

COVID-19 has changed from something you only heard about on the news every second day, to the reason why our ‘normal’ way of life has come to a virtual standstill and then changed in the blink of an eye. It appears COVID-19 has now surpassed its buzzword status, having dominated almost every news headline as well as being blamed for all our current problems.

Potato tuber corky cracks caused by multiple Rhizoctonia species

Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is the most consumed and economically important vegetable crop in the world.

Conservation Agriculture Reduces Erosion And Improves Production

Soil erosion is a natural process, but the rate of soil erosion presently taking place – mainly due to anthropogenic influence – is not sustainable. When travelling through South Africa, we see soil eroded by water as acceptable and natural.

Setting The Standards In Table Grape Production

Known for its high standards throughout the production chain, the Modderdrift table grape farming enterprise has set the benchmark for the table grape industry, giving it a competitive advantage when it comes to export markets.