More than roads required

Much emphasis is given to the importance of infrastructure in boosting the economy of rural areas and for reducing poverty there. Roads mean more trade, right? Roads mean that you can get your produce to the market, don't they?

The latest Agritrade newsletter reports on a review done on the link between infrastructure and agricultural trade and poverty reduction, published in September 2013, which “confirms that rural roads are important for poverty reduction, and can increase agricultural productivity and market access”. But it also finds “little evidence that roads have a direct impact on the poorest communities”.

The findings make the case that investment in "soft infrastructure" like the services related to extension and maintaining standards are as important as putting money towards "hard infrastructure" (roads, energy supply, communications).

The whole article and editorial comment can be found here.

In The Agri Handbook, the importance of infrastructure is underscored by the fact that both the chapter on infrastructure and the chapter on developing farmer support are in the "National issues" section. There are also chapters on the importance of rural development, and agricultural education and training.

Eastern Cape gets fracking

Engineering News reports that the first phase of shale gas exploration has begun in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It was launched by the Eastern Cape Department of Economic Development, Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEDEAT). This despite the concerns and opposition of many citizens and experts.

Fracking (hydraulic fracturing) involves injecting millions of litres of water, chemicals and sand into Mother Earth at high pressure to free pockets of natural gas. Find out more, including the documented environmental risk, at www.treasurethekaroo.co.za . [Yes, the term "Mother Earth" is emotive, and so you know where this writer stands on the issue.]

On the same day, for the record, a solar company CEO speaking about fracking says: " ... the long-term repercussions on the economy as well as the effect on the environment and public health, may be staggering, not to mention the potential clean-up costs that will fall on taxpayers for decades to come".

Shale gas is one of the sources of energy on which you will find notes in the Energy chapter of The Agri Handbook. Solar and other renewable energy sources are looked at in a dedicated Renewable energy chapter.

New York roof farm to open on the 17 Dec

Whole Foods Market has been constructing a 20 000 square foot (close to 2000 m2) greenhouse on the roof of its store in Gowanus, Brooklyn. Advanced irrigation systems will use up to 20 times less than conventional farming. Inhabitat NEW YORK CITY quips: It doesn't get more local than that!

As urbanisation is to be a trend worldwide urban farming will become more vital for food security. This is dealt with in "The urban question" chapter of The Agri Handbook.

Rest in peace

"No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite."

Nelson Mandela 1918 - 2013.

Find the earlier blog On saints and personas: Nelson Mandela's 95th birthday here.

Don't give up!

You may not be aware of it, but the biggest AIDS conference on the African continent is currently taking place in Cape Town [find information on the 17th International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA) event here].

An important message to the person finding out they are infected is that a healthy, continued life is possible (DON'T GIVE UP!) Studies point to the importance of nutrition, basic food safety, adequate sleep and a positive attitude. And ARV medication has made a huge difference in the lives of millions.

HIV and AIDS is a chapter in The Agri Handbook. HIV and AIDS is everyone's business and farmers may not know where to turn if one of their workers becomes infected. Find the chapter here.

Find the latest statistics and news of progress against HIV and AIDS at http://www.unaids.org.

What to do about this?

The last SA The Good News newsletter reminded us that the black middle class in the country grew from 1.7 million in 2004 to 4.2 million a few months ago. These findings by the University of Cape Town's Unilever Institute of Strategic Marketing are good news for the country's demographics (strange we are not hearing more about this!) It suggests that although change flies beneath the radar, it is happening nonetheless.

And yet we still have the poor and, in South Africa, some of the widest inequalities in the world (we are joined by some other African countries in this). The wealthiest 10% consume 51% of goods, while the poorest 10% account for a mere 1.1%. Just a few kilometres from the affluent live people in abject poverty.

What can we do about this?

A question like that usually sends us into our heads and we spout out answers: this solution or that, or we fix blame somewhere.

The poor are part of us. It seems to me that until we register this in our hearts, no political or economic fix in the world will change anything.

Food to Lesotho

Today, transport of food aid to Lesotho from South Africa begins. The small, landlocked neighbour is currently experiencing a food crisis.

This forms part of an agreement between South Africa and the United Nations World Food Program in which South Africa donated R180 million (about USD 18 million) to help alleviate the food crisis next door. Maize (corn) will be non-GM (genetically modified), and 40 percent of it will purchased from smallholder farmers here. All the other food commodities will also come from local suppliers of pulses, salt, oil and fish.

Food security is what agriculture is all about, of course. Some human beings produce surplus food so that the rest of us can get on with other jobs. The Agri Handbook covers the entire agricultural value chain in South Africa. Chapters include Biotechnology, Food security and smallholder farmer support.

Trade Competitiveness Intelligence -- Agbiz/DAFF conference

Are you aware that at the end of this century, Asia and Africa will make up 81% of the planet's population of 10.1 billion?

To look at possible scenarios like the above, the Agricultural Business Chamber (Agbiz) and the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) hosted a conference on trade competitiveness last week in Pretoria.

Aims of the conference included

• building strategies to create investment through agricultural trade development
• linking business strategies to government strategies
• marketing South Africa's trade position into a new world.

Several presentations are available at www.agbiz.co.za

Eating while the planet warms up

2013 is one of the 10 warmest years since records began, says the World Meteorological Organisation. But doesn't the planet go through natural cycles of climate change? Hasn't it done so for centuries. What is the fuss about climate change?

In the past these changes happened over hundreds of years allowing plants and animals to adapt. What we are noticing is a speeding up of change, leaving less time to adapt and placing our ecosystems in danger.

Agriculture faces the challenge of dramatically increasing production of food to feed the expected nine-billion people on this planet by 2050. Climate change is a wildcard thrown into the mix.

The Third Global Conference on Agriculture, Food Security and Climate Change is to be held in South Africa this December. Find information at http://afcconference.agric.za.

Climate change is a chapter in The Agri Handbook for South Africa. Find role players and information there.

What is happening in the Western Cape?

In an interesting development, the province which saw farm labourer unrest earlier this year and at the end of 2012 has seen a GROWTH in employment opportunities on farms. In the other eight provinces, jobs on farms decreased.

According to Statistics South Africa, farm worker employment in the country dropped from 712 000 to 706 000 in the third quarter of 2013. In contrast, the Western Cape saw its figures go up from 117 000 to 139 000.

What is happening?

There is more to the answer, of course, but it is noteworthy how much energy goes into the issue of farm workers in this province. For starters, there is actually a farm worker portfolio in the provincial department of agriculture. The department also runs a Farmworker of the Year competition, which saw a record number of entries in 2013. The winner's prize is valued at R100 000 (around USD 10 000) which includes cash and an overseas trip.

Find the Western Cape Department of Agriculture website here.

In The Agri Handbook for South Africa, job creation is a theme is many of the chapters, as well as being a chapter all on its own in the National Issues section. Find it here.

The potentials of the biogas industry in South Africa

According to Southern African Biogas Industry Association (Sabia) chairperson Mark Tiepelt:

• The biogas industry could turn into a R10-billion industry, spurring the manufacturing sector with the development of biogas-specific products and services 
• The biogas sector can create five to ten times the number of jobs that other renewable-energy projects do.

Other benefits include:

• Waste can further be used as compost
• Electricity can be generated in rural areas not reached by Eskom, the State's power utility
• Electricity will help relieve the strain on national electricity grid
• A contribution to carbon mitigation

South Africa has about 300 biogas digesters in operation. Neighbouring Lesotho has some 600! We can do better in this country.

A biogas conference will be held in Midrand on October 30 and 31 to look at the potential of biogas in the country.

Useful contacts are Southern African Biogas Industry Association (Sabia) and the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) Institute of Agricultural Engineering in Silverton near Pretoria.

Biogas is covered in the Renewable energy chapter of The Agri Handbook.

Farmers in France (and elsewhere)

It is with great concern that we read the article High suicide rate highlights plight of French farmers.

Let us remember that most of us have lost touch with the vocation which allows us to be businessmen, doctors, bankers, lawyers etc. Somebody else cultivates the food that sustains you, and so you are released to pursue the career that you do. If it were not for farmers, we would have to be growing our own food. If you are like me, you get your food from the nearest supermarket -- and that supermarket sources its food from farmers.

True, farmers earn their money from growing that food, but let's take our hats off to them for a moment, and thank them for the food in our supermakets and the food in our stomachs.

Biofuels sector receives a massive boost

When people talk about biofuels they are essentially referring to ethanol or biodiesel. Ethanol is mostly derived from corn (maize) and sugar cane. Ethanol is favoured in the Americas, US and Brazil producing most of the world's ethanol). Europe and China produce biodiesel. Here the sources are usually soybeans, sunflower, canola -- and waste cooking oil!

Algae is increasingly a possibility, and this week brings news of companies seeking investment in this area. 

Biofuels can be produced from any number of plant crops. Actually, from ANY plant material. A recent technology makes biofuel by breaking down plant cell walls.

Earlier this week in South Africa, the Department of Energy announced that compulsory blending of fuel with a percentage of biofuels is to commence on the 1 October 2015. It is the step that the biofuels sector and many in agriculture have been waiting for. Without this, biofuels would always have been just a nice idea.

Find the press release here.

Biofuels is one of the chapters in The Agri Handbook.

13th South African Agricultural Outlook Conference

The 13th South African Agricultural Outlook Conference kicks off at 7h45 on Monday, 30 September.

Find the final programme here.

See you there!

Tomorrow and 55 000 people

Tomorrow, Saturday 28 September, is World Rabies Day. It is part of an international drive to educate the public on rabies and its prevention.

After being bitten by a rabid animal a human has a short window period in which to receive vaccination. There is no cure after this window period. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the United States of America, more than 55 000 people die from rabies every year, mostly in Africa and Asia.

Read what the CDC says about preventing rabies.

Rabies is covered in the Biosecurity chapter of  The Agri Handbook. Also of relevance is the chapter on Animal Health.

Agricultural Trade between the USA and South Africa

Ever wondered what happens in agricultural trade between the USA and South Africa?

• The US imports fruit, wine and beer, raw cane sugar, tree nuts, fruit juice and planting seed from South Africa. 
• It exports the following: dairy products, poultry meat and products, planting seed, tree nuts, wheat, vegetable fats and oils, live animals, sugars, processed fruit and vegetables.

Last week [16 - 19 September] saw a visit to South Africa by delegates from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). South Africa's Agricultural Business Chamber (Agbiz) reports on the Agribusiness Trade Mission (ATM) and gives stats of US-SA trade.

Decisions and long-term views

Everybody makes a wrong decision, sooner or later. Be it in a personal capacity, in a marriage or in government, this is true.  The thing is: can you recognise when this has happened? Can you make a U-turn, recover and improve?

This is more likely to happen where there is openness, where an "opposing narrative" is looked at and accommodated -- even if it is not accepted. If the other point-of-view is not even allowed to surface, then it is unlikely that any introspection will happen, certainly not any honest introspection.

In his book The Long View: Getting beyond the drama of SA's headlines, JP Landman looks at eight issues that have a bearing on whether this country has what it takes to be successful. That South Africa is an open society is one of the things going for it.

Two of the issues mentioned work against the country.

Find the interview with JP Landman on www.polity.org.za or click here.

South African fresh produce markets and an AGM

In 1945 South Africa had 130 markets, with some 600 market agencies operating in those markets across the country. Some form of representation was required for these agents and so the Institute Market Agents of South Africa (IMASA) came into being.

Over the past few years IMASA has experienced a renewal with a "younger breed of market agents who with a series of Presidents, began to reshape the organisation and give it new direction". Project Rebirth, voted into motion in 2011, has made a significant impact on the fresh produce markets scene and has contributed towards real improvements which are currently taking place on some markets. The IMASA press release continues: "... it’s created an awareness of the gravity of many of our markets amongst significant role-players and has helped to bring these role-players together in a united forum to address the many issues facing markets. IMASA has handed over Project Rebirth to the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) but continues to make its contribution on the Steering Committee which is now driving Project Rebirth".

The 68th IMASA AGM will be held on the 19th and 20th of this month. Market Agents from across the country are invited to attend the conference and also to partake in industry matters as well as current affairs.

For more information kindly visit the IMASA Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/IMASA/386536428138721 and follow them on Twitter @IMASouthAfrica.

Find The Agri Handbook overview of South Africa's fresh produce markets here.

Agriculture business update: September 2013

The AgriBusiness Price Update provides insights in agricultural input prices (irrigation tariffs, fertilisers, fuel prices, electricity tariffs and minimum wages) and output prices (for selected grains, livestock and vegetable commodities). It concludes with the overall agricultural industry performance (terms of trade and gross income discussions).

Click here to view the document.

Courtesy: Standard Bank Agribusiness

A solution to the devastation in the USA, EU bee population to be found in Africa?

Bees are the most important pollinators of crops and, according to Agricultural Research Council (ARC) staff, responsible for one out of three mouthfuls of food you will eat today.

The reader will appreciate the high consternation in Northern Hemisphere countries where high losses to commercial honeybee colonies continue. Pesticides and herbicides and changing weather are among reasons given, but a chief cause is the varroa mite and viruses associated with it.

There might be some good news though, from the annual conference for beekeepers in South Africa (2013 BeeCon). Peter Neumann, professor of bee health at Bern University in Switzerland, told the audience that African honeybees appear to be resistant to the mite, and more research might prevent further losses in the north.

Beekeeping is one of the nearly 180 chapters in The Agri Handbook. Find contact details of role players and overviews here.

How can South Africa do better with its agricultural exports?

If South Africa is to reach her goal of 5% economic growth and more, it is vital that she has an agricultural sector which is in good shape, and that she proceeds from there. Agriculture is primary. On its own it might not draw many wolf-whistles for contribution to the country's GDP, but the case becomes pretty convincing when you take a look at how much depends on agriculture. The obvious lead-on's are food manufacturing, food retailing and the labour absorption in rural areas. And the context is much wider when you consider all the input industries (fertiliser, irrigation, animal feeds etc), financial industries and so on.

South Africa's Agricultural Trade Competitiveness Desktop Diagnostics continues: "The South Africa’s agricultural sector has found lucrative markets for their products in many parts of the world. Its contribution to South Africa’s total exports is approximately 13 percent. However, the globalisation coupled with trade liberalisation of the last decades did not spur export-led growth or significant diversification of the country’s agricultural export basket. Consequently, technological advances and market access are not sufficient to unlock the gains from trade that highlights the importance of indigenous supply-side constraints in trade development".

Find this study, done by the North-West University for the National Agricultural Marketing Council (NAMC), here.

Wish you could foretell the future?

Ever wished you knew what was in store? The mistakes you would have avoided! Imagine the opportunities you could have grabbed with two hands!

It should be no surprise that the most popular blog on this website has been Predictions for agriculture 2013, even though it was written way back in January.

The AMT Agri Outlook event happens at the end of this month (September). Apart from being a time to network with other role players, it is an attempt to take stock of where we are at and what the future holds.

The day begins with a presentation by the president of the International Food and Agribusiness Management Association, entitled "Talent: The Common and Essential Denominator Across the Value Chain of Nutrition". Several other experts give their predictions before brunch at 11h30. Panels and discussions taking us into the afternoon deal with minimum wages, land reform, climate and the global outlook on grains, oilseeds and livestock.

The day closes with a traditional South African spit braai (barbeque).

Find the complete programme and the booking form here.

Do we have the people that will command the economy 15 years from now?

Being equipped and ready for your day includes having people on board who know what they are doing. This is true, whether one is talking of one's family, community or business, or the country at large.

Agriculture is where South Africa must see its investment in the future. Advancing economies like Russia, China, India, Indonesia, Turkey, Brazil and Mexico are built on a healthy agricultural sector. Do we have the people with the skills to command the South African economy in 15 years' time? This is the question asked by Prof Mohammed Karaan, dean of AgriSciences at Stellenbosch University, two weeks ago. Find the report of his speech here.

NOSA Agri, who have just exhibited at the Harare Agricultural Show in Zimbabwe, say that training for farmers in Africa is crucial. To make their case, they point to facts like:

• The United Nations estimates that the global population will reach 9.2 billion by 2050.
• Food security is expected to become an increasing global issue.
• Agriculture is by far the world's largest business; the livelihoods of approximately 2.6 billion people, 40% of the world’s population, depend on it.
• 60% of the world’s uncultivated arable land is lying unused in Africa.
• There is a substantial need for African farmers to produce more food for Africa and for the world.

The Agri Handbook lists agricultural education providers in South Africa as well as potential careers in this (and related) sectors. A useful reference is also the Skills Handbook website.

Agriculture business update: August 2013

The AgriBusiness Price Update provides insights in agricultural input prices (irrigation tariffs, fertilisers, fuel prices, electricity tariffs and minimum wages) and output prices (for selected grains, livestock and vegetable commodities). It concludes with the overall agricultural industry performance (terms of trade and gross income discussions).

Click here to view the document.

Courtesy: Standard Bank Agribusiness

Ten years

Does ten years seem like a long time to you? What were you doing in 2003? The course of your whole life can change (or be confirmed) over a period like that.

Perhaps the best indicator of time is our children. You can look at them and wonder what happened to the years. Suddenly (it seems) they are young woman, young man and you know that you yourself are not excluded from the passing of time.

Ten years ago I was part of a small team which begun work on its first agricultural publication, the predecessor of The Agri Handbook. We met with over 400 role players to introduce ourselves and our plans. Ten years later, 2013, saw the publication of the 5th edition of the book which provides an overview on the South African agricultural value chain.

The Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP) released its 10-year look-ahead this month. BFAP is a gathering of individuals from the University of Pretoria, Stellenbosch University and the Provincial Department of Agriculture, Western Cape. Find the agricultural baseline outlook 2013-2022 at www.bfap.co.za.

South Africa to buy food from Angola, Zambia, DRC and northern Mozambique

Writing in Farmer's Weekly (16 August 2013), Dr Anthony Turton (University of the Free State) predicts that arid areas in Southern Africa will expand northwards while the strength of rivers decrease. Within a decade, he says, Angola, Zambia, DRC and northern Mozambique will be producing food for the region.

Two-thirds of the global population will be living under water-stressed conditions by 2025. South Africa will face a shortfall of 30 billion cubic metres at this time. One of the country's major problems is evaporation (we thought we were smart by building all our dams in previous decades: these help us to lose water faster!)

Advice given to farmers (and the country) includes:

• Start to recycle water.
• Do your sums on how your use of water contributes to low-skilled jobs. As water scarcity increases, there will be calls for water to be proportioned away from agriculture to other sectors.
• Store water in underground aquifers rather than in dams.

Find the country's role players in water-related chapters of The Agri Handbook e.g. Water, Irrigation, Rainwater harvesting, Boreholes and windmills and Water storage.

What happened to biofuels?

A few years ago in this country, substantial interest was expressed in the prospects of biofuels. It would give a lift to the agricultural community struggling at the time with very low maize (corn) prices and boost new farmers in the sector. It would create jobs, add to the country's energy security and so on. Most of the fanfare died down when government excluded maize from its National Biofuels Industrial Strategy in 2007.

The bells and whistles may have died down but a certain momentum remained. The focus has been on the use of sugarcane, sorghum, soybeans and canola (rapeseed).

Last week (13 August) the Department of Energy gave an update on the Biofuels Strategy to Parliament. Find the presentation on the Agricultural Business Chamber (Agbiz) website, www.agbiz.co.za or click here.

Biofuels is one of the nearly 180 chapters in The Agri Handbook. Other chapters of interest will be  Renewable energy, Energy and the different chapters like Sorghum, Soybeans, Canola and Sugarcane.

Oranges and lemons ...

Agritrade reports that South Africa is projected to account for 61.9% of southern hemisphere citrus exports in 2013. The country will account for 76% of southern hemisphere orange exports, 30% of mandarin exports, 32% of lemon exports and 97% of grapefruit exports.

"Currency movements have been helping the export of South African citrus, despite rising input costs linked to minimum wage increases (+52%), rising energy and other input costs, and increased transportation and shipping charges (Maersk and SAFMARINE have announced a planned increase of “up to 30%” in shipping charges “to keep up with the demand for containerised shipping” ). Containerised shipping is making local markets and local processing more attractive".

Find the full report here.

The citrus industry in the Southern Hemisphere is represented by the Southern Hemisphere Association of Fresh Fruit Exporters (SHAFFE), and in South Africa by the Citrus Growers Association (CGASA).

The citrus fruit sector is covered here in The Agri Handbook.

Pigs like to live in mud

Do you know that pigs roll in mud to protect themselves against the sun and extreme temperatures, or against flies and parasites? Perhaps you knew, but many think that pigs just like to be dirty and to live in mud. The average person knows little about these intelligent creatures.

Commercial pig farmers in South Africa are represented by the South African Pork Producers Organisation (SAPPO). All agricultural commodity associations are involved, one way or another, in encouraging people from previously disadvantaged groups to farm. Part of SAPPO's mentorship programme to developing pig farmers includes free training opportunities at its training facility at Baynesfield. Qeda Nyoka is responsible for SAPPO's developing farmer projects. Read about SAPPO at www.sapork.com.

The main exporters of pork to South Africa are Germany (40%), Canada (25%), Spain (14%) and France (6%).

Pork is one of the 22 livestock chapters in The Agri Handbook for South Africa (there are nearly 180 chapters in all). Find the link to the chapter here.

Growing meat and houses in science labs

Human evolution has gone hand-in-hand with the eating of meat. Over the centuries, the days and nights around the fires of feasts where meat was cooked must be countless. And the barbeques (braais in South Africa) of today go on.

If you are unfamiliar with the production of meat in laboratories, read more at http://culturedbeef.net or watch the cultured beef video (just over 6 minutes). The research makes sense when you bear in mind the projected growth in the human population by 2050, to say nothing of the environmental (and some ethical) issues around meat production.

Some of you may think "Whatever next!"

Well, you could watch view James Hutson's clip explaining synthetic biology. View the tree that turns into a tree and a house, giving a whole new meaning to "treehouse", what was previously limited to something which absorbed a child's time.

After this, Biotechnology and plant breeding, one of the chapters in The Agri Handbook might seem quite tame, but will bring you back to what, for now anyway, is the present.

On long weekends and women

Hey! It's a long weekend ahead! Friday is National Woman's Day in South Africa.

Women. If you think of your own life you will know the tremendous role that women played in shaping who and what you are. Picture your mothers and grandmothers, who made you feel loved and made you believe that this world had a place just for you. And then the early girlfriends who seriously challenged that notion! Then there were others whose hearts you broke, and now, your whole day can still take its cue from spouse or partner, daughter or sister.

Think of humanity's story. Where are the women? The support was there, but women in its history have a more obscure role. How many female prime ministers, presidents and CEOs were you aware of 10 years ago? And today?

National Woman's Day has its origin in South African history when some twenty thousand women marched on the union buildings to protest against the Pass Laws in 1956, on the 9 August. This Friday we will know that legislated Apartheid might be over, but many other struggles remain. Poverty or being dominated by another person might affect all human beings alike, but when you are a women common struggles like these take on potentially more devastating and terrifying consequences.

Women is a chapter in the National Issues section of The Agri Handbook.

To our women everywhere, here's to you. We think of you and remember you with thanks.

South Africa: increasingly a market for EU agricultural exports

South Africans are mostly aware that the EU is a prime market for its agricultural produce. After the De Doorns industrial action at the beginning of the year we heard at least once from disgruntled strikers that food security was not the issue since most of the fruit was for the export market (thus excusing the interruption to the agricultural sector).

Do we know that it is starting to be a two-way street?

The latest Agritrade newsletter from the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA) tells us that: "... a review of Eurostat data posted on the EC’s DG Agriculture website shows that the South African market is increasingly important to EU food and agricultural product exporters, with exports to South Africa growing 2.5 times as fast as the growth in overall EU food and agricultural product exports since 2002. Food and agricultural products have increased their share of total EU exports to South Africa from 3.2 to 5.5%, while South Africa’s food and agricultural trade surplus with the EU has fallen from €1,378 million in 2002 to €567 million in 2011".

Find the complete article here. Read about the CTA at www.cta.int.

Exporting is one of the chapters in The Agri Handbook.

Poisoning wildlife on farms

The use of poison on farms as a response to predators can have unintended consequences. This week's agricultural weekly, the Landbouweekblad, carries a story about 49 vultures being poisoned. Dr Gerhard Verdoorn of the Griffon Poison Information Centre responded with furious calls to prosecute the farmer involved. Find the story here.

The issue of predation is covered in the Wildlife on farms chapter in The Agri Handbook. A list of role players appears there as well as control methods, some of which are hotly debated. There are also chapters on birds and crop protection. Find the chapters in the Afrikaans edition here: Wild op plase, Voëls en boerdery and Oesbeskerming.

Agricultural business and the investment climate in South Africa

The Agricultural Business Chamber (Agbiz) has compiled a study on the investment climate in South African agriculture. Find it here.

Affecting the industry's investment climate are:

• The upcoming elections in 2014 which are bringing a wait-and-see slow down.
• Policy developments around land. 
• The longer-term effect of the weaker exchange rate
• Increases in the price of energy (time to look at alternative energy sources?)
• Other administered prices (set by government and not the market) which have a negative effect on the price of doing business
• The recent labour unrest and demands (yes, address the social needs in the country but don't squash its business prospects: food security and much more is at stake)

Solutions lie in

• improved productivity and efficiencies
• utilisation of expanding markets
• the sophistication and efficiency of the value chain

These are all dependent on both local and international investment.

Agbiz represents the major part of the agribusiness sector in the country. Find a list of its members on its website, www.agbiz.co.za or click here. The chapter on agribusiness in The Agri Handbook is here.

The agricultural chemicals sector to look north?

The Global Business Report has put out a research report about the South African chemicals industry. Find it here.

South Africa's chemical sector is one of the larger employers with some 200 000 jobs. It contributes around 5% to the gross domestic product (GDP).

In a country whose economy remains at relatively low levels of growth, the sector should look north of its borders where most countries are expected to grow by at least 4%, the report recommends.

Find the overview of the agricultural chemicals sector in the Crop protection chapter of The Agri Handbook, as well as a list of all its stakeholders.

Providing skills in the agri-food sector

Farmer's Weekly recently ran a feature "The skills needed to make SA farming more profitable". The message was that a skills shortage exists in all areas of agriculture.

Skills that need to be sharpened included:

• Farm management, entrepreneurship, marketing, financial planning and management, natural resource management, some technical knowledge (small-scale farmer level)
• Adult basic education and training (ABET) and other life skills (the labour force in commercial agriculture)
• Business and marketing skills, environmentally responsible production and processing systems, raising health and safety compliance and making more progress towards meeting international standards (commercial farmers)

Find the AgriSETA list of scarce skills here.

Amongst the nearly 180 chapters of The Agri Handbook is Agricultural education and training. It lists the achievements in education over 2011-2012 and provides contact details of training providers in the country: all agricultural schools, colleges, Further Education and Training (FET) colleges, AgriSETA-accredited trainers, universities and more.

Prospects for growth in Africa, despite challenges

FORUM FORBES AFRIQUE IN CONGO BRAZZAVILE:

It is likely that seven of the fastest growing economies in the world will be in Sub-Saharan Africa over the next five years. These are Ethiopia, Mozambique, Tanzania, Congo, Zambia, Nigeria and Ghana.

What the continent has going for it includes:

• abundant natural resources
• a growing middle class (growing consumer power with skills to transform economies)
• very youthful population
• investment opportunities in infrastructure   

 The African Development Bank is the Executing Agency for the Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa (PIDA). Visit www.afdb.org and www.pidafrica.org. Investment opportunities exist where something has to happen, and the entrepreneur anticipates the need and positions himself to take advantage of it. Infrastructure within and between states in Africa falls into this category.

Challenges remain unstable commodity prices, youth unemployment and rising inequality.

Africa and agriculture, the opening chapter in The Agri Handbook for South Africa, provides a useful overview of Africa and lists the dominant role players.

Bamboo -- an agricultural crop?

Bamboo is amongst the fastest growing plants in the world. In Asian countries it is an incredible raw material with way over a thousand uses!

South Africa's Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC) is backing the Eastern Cape province to be the leader of a bamboo industry in Southern Africa [find information about the ECDC at www.ecdc.co.za]. This past weekend brought news of yet another investment by the ECDC into a bamboo harvesting trial.

The bamboo value chain has the potential to create thousands of jobs. Agriculture is the nucleus for many related job prospects. Before the crop you have a multitude of "upstream industries". Once the crop is harvested, various manufacturing, distribution and retail subsectors kick into action.

We welcome any and every effort by a South African authority to support a potential winner like bamboo!

Bamboo is one of the 40-plus crop chapters in The Agri Handbook for South Africa. Find information and bamboo and contact details of role players here.

On saints and personas: Nelson Mandela's 95th birthday

When people turn another person into a saint they let themselves off the hook — and create a situation which psychically calls for redress and balance. You will find evidence of this in any country or community (especially religious) which holds up a mental idea of the ideal citizen or ideal believer.

This can happen by trying to be the perfect child. It certainly happens to some at high school level. The school prefect, living up to role and discharging duties, faces the reality of becoming separated from the truth of her own being, particularly when such a person begins questioning what it is that she is upholding.

The person being lifted up becomes trapped in a role, and can hardly be herself because of the narrative about that self prevalent in her circle. There are exceptions, and certainly some are able to pull off such a role unblemished for the duration of their term. It might seem like an eternity, but eventually university, the workplace, a new country or even death beckon, and such a person is happy for the release.

What goes with an alienation of self? There is more, but here are some indications:

• Depression, certainly. The life inside, the authentic self, goes missing somewhere in the building and we feel the sadness of the loss without knowing why. Not until we are ready to face the reason, anyway.
• Zeal is another symptom, and the greatest threat to our world is from people who know exactly what has to be done to usher in everlasting utopia! Their solution might be political or religious, but the social engineering involved always creates further problems. And the wise know that within us we have all carried the sword at one time or another.

The functioning of society relies to a great measure on having role players that people can admire, and happy the one whose shoulders are big enough to carry the role! A problem, of course, is that by the same token we confer on them a sense of being other-worldly, even impractical, thus comments attributed to Zimbabwean president Robert Mugabe and an individual of South Africa's Pan Africanist Congress (PAC) recently on Nelson Mandela to the effect that he was too saintly.

People forget Mandela was an astute politician as well as being a far-seeing human being. What he represents gave us all another chance, and I for my part and in my small way will do my best in the hope that we never blow it.

Today, Mandela's 95th birthday, let us remember our saints, and the human beings behind the vaunted social persona we project onto them. Happy birthday, Mr Mandela.

Farm Africa: six phases in making money from aquaculture

Farm Africa is an NGO working with communities in Africa to "end hunger ... grow farming". Its July newsletter includes an 8-minute video on aquaculture, farming with fish. The video takes the viewer through 6 stages, from building the small dam to harvesting this vital source of protein. I enjoyed the accompanying music too: the cool guitar reminds me of South Africa's own Ray Phiri (overseas visitors may have heard him on Paul Simon's Graceland).

Aquaculture is included once again in South Africa's IPAPs as a sector singled out for financial support and emphasis (see previous blogs like "Farming in Cape Town" and "Interested in which South African agri sectors are set to receive energy and attention from government as per its strategy?").

Aquaculture is covered in The Agri Handbook. Find overviews, business plans, role players and further publications here.

More predictions for agriculture, 2013-14

Two important presentations have been given on agriculture in the past days:

• Marc Sadler, head of Agriculture Risk Management at the World Bank gave a presentation Investing in agriculture is not a lottery – understanding the risks and managing them “whatever the weather” at the Agriculture Investment Summit Europe 2013. Find it here.
• Ernst Janovsky, head of Absa Agribusiness, presented his Agri commodity and food price outlook which can be found on the website of South Africa's Agricultural Business Chamber (Agbiz), or click here.

Discussing the Janovsky presentation in their 11 July newsletter, Lindie Stroebel of Agbiz writes:

"The cost of production remains the most concerning issue ... cost of production increases faster than producer prices. The only solution to the problem is to become more productive and efficient. Technology is again the only option to increasing productivity. This includes storage, transport, information, biological and genetic technology, as well as economies of scale. Resource limitations reinforce the need for improved technology.

"Commodity prices are expected to remain flat and will not drive food prices higher. Farmers are, unfortunately, going to absorb the cost increases and will probably experience lower margins in the immediate future. Food prices will be driven by the exchange rate risk, energy prices and labour cost. In the longer run, the stronger demand will have a recovering effect on producer prices".

Stroebel summarises Agbiz' position in three points:

1. When related to the positive agribusiness confidence, the outlook highlights the underlying long term opportunities the industry holds, provided the right approach to address the challenges is adopted.

2. There are a number of exogenous factors impacting negatively on investment, such as significant political and policy uncertainty, the cost effect of the weak and volatile exchange rate, dependency on energy and labour demands:

• Investment will be slow and reluctant until after the elections in 2014.
• The uncertainties created by certain policy developments, such as the restitution of land rights amendment bill, the expropriation bill, the property valuation bill, carbon tax, etc., are causing reluctance to invest.
• The weak exchange rate benefits the export industry, but in the long run has a detrimental effect on investment and cost of production.
• SA is a huge importer of energy and as agriculture is a massive utiliser of energy, at all different levels of the value chain, alternative local sources and more energy efficient operations should be incorporated to minimise the cost effect on the economy as a whole.
• Outrageous labour demands are a serious cost driver and influencer on the investment climate. Solutions should be found and implemented to address the social needs in the country whilst nurturing the business prospects, especially in agribusiness, as it has food security at stake. 

3. The ultimate solution lies in increased efficiencies, through optimised utilisation of resources (both natural and human) and incorporation of technology. We depend on investments in and incorporation of relevant technologies to bring about the yields and productivity gains recorded in other parts of the world, and to decrease the cost of doing business.

We remind the visitor of the AMT Outlook Conference on the 30 September, which we covered in the blog "Event Notification: AMT South African Agricultural Outlook Conference - 30 September 2013'

Co-operatives help people to help themselves

There is little appreciation for the importance, significance and potential of the co-operatives model in South Africa, Dr Rob Davies told an audience in Durban over the weekend. Addressing the International Cooperatives Day event, the Minister of Trade & Industry spoke again of additional measures in the pipeline to boost this vehicle (co-operatives) as a way to empower people.

Co-operative support institutions being developed are:

• the Cooperatives Development Agency, to provide financial and non-financial support
• the Cooperatives Academy to provide education and training and 
• the Cooperatives Tribunal to help co-operatives to resolve internal conflicts.

Co-operatives made the world of difference to South African commercial agriculture in the previous century. Co-operatives help people to help themselves, and we should welcome every effort to strengthen this business model. 

Co-operatives is one of the nearly 180 chapters in The Agri Handbook.

Opportunities in Mozambique

Our previous post looked at where the agricultural focus was in South Africa. In this blog, we look to where the sun rises - Mozambique.

Specific agricultural investment opportunities here were identified by the Investment Promotion Centre in Mozambique. These include soybeans, bananas, cashew nuts, vegetables, maize, cassava, rice, sugar, cotton, aquaculture, poultry and forestry. Find the brochure on these opportunities here.

Contacts are provided in the brochure. Further useful organisations are CEPAGRI, the High Commission of the Republic of Mozambique and SAMOZACC.  Centro de Promoção da Agricultura (CEPAGRI) is a government body mandated by the state to attract investment to Mozambique’s agriculture sector. View the High Commission's website here. The SA-Mozambique Chamber of Commerce (SAMOZACC) was established to promote trade and offer business advice between the two countries.

Industry bodies like Agri SA and the Agricultural Business Chamber (Agbiz) in South Africa will also be able to assist.

Contact details for literally hundreds of agricultural role players are provided in The Agri Handbook for South Africa.

Interested in which South African agri sectors are set to receive energy and attention from government as per its strategy?

The Department of Trade & Industry identifies economic sectors and subsectors to which it should lend its weight. These sectors have potential to grow jobs and the economy, all the more so if government could lend a hand. These areas for government attention can be found in South Africa's Industrial Policy Action Plans (IPAPs).

We will look at which areas are of interest to agriculture in the IPAP for the years 2013/14 - 2015/16, and provide a link to where overviews of those sectors can be found in The Agri Handbook.

Key action programmes still include the following from the previous IPAP:

= development of a food processing strategy and action plan
= development of a soybean strategy action plan
= development of the organic food sector
= development of the small-scale milling industry
= enhancement of the competitiveness of the domestic fruit and vegetable canning industry

Although not specifically agriculture, we mention here the so-called Green industries (which include renewable energy).

Areas covered in the previous IPAP which have not been renewed are the implementation of the water efficiency programme for the sugar sector and the promotion of rooibos and honeybush exports.

Aquaculture is identified for increased intervention, as are biofuels and forestry.

A new programme in agro-processing is that of supporting the public-private partnership for food security, primarily through increasing the participation of smallholder farmers in the formal agro-processing sector. This is to happen through giving these farmers access to the retail sector, government procurement and small-scale processing opportunities.

Event Notification: AMT South African Agricultural Outlook Conference - 30 September 2013

We have attended most of the AMT conferences since 2003 when we began to do research for The Agri Handbook. Since our first edition, we have also had an exhibition stall at many of the conferences.

Each time we have found the AMT conference valuable – not only the scenarios and addresses by experts, but also the interaction which happens at question time or over coffee and snacks after the session. Should you wish to exhibit or attend, you will find the information below helpful. Mention that you found out about the event via this website and you will receive a discount on your booking.

Click to enlarge

Programme:

 Other details:

	English Programme and Afrikaans Press Release
	Keynote speaker - Thad Simons (Novus International)

 Who should attend?

• Agribusiness managers (in investment, finance, and risk management) and directors
• Bankers lending to the agribusiness sector
• Accountants and lawyers to agribusiness
• Government
• Producers and Producer organizations
• Retail: supermarkets, all food industries

For queries or bookings contact:

Minda Reinet Bornman
Communications and Marketing Manager
Aginfo trading as AMT (Pty) Ltd.
Telephone: +27 (0)12 348 8344/27 (0)12 3612748
Cell: +27 (0)82 575 4282
Fax:: +27 (0)866159199

Please Welcome "Die Agri Handboek 2013/14"

Hi Everyone,

I help Craig put The Agri Handbook together and will occasionally be posting here too.

This post is to make you aware of the Afrikaans version of The Agri Handbook, which was launched on 10 May 2013  and is available to view, search and download here: http://www.scribd.com/doc/140582922/Die-Agri-Handboek-2013-14, or you can use this shortened URL to tweet it to your friends: http://goo.gl/QaGCj.

Just for fun we have embedded it below.

Please feel free to embed the publication in your website too. Your readers will appreciate the free information and support on agriculture, and you will increase traffic to your website.

The steps to follow to embed the publication are here. It won't cost you any bandwidth because Scribd.com covers that. Readers stay on your site so you don't loose any visitors. Another nice feature is that you can link to a specific page in the book (such as your advert, if you are an advertiser, or a specific crop if you are a researcher or NGO).

Below for example is the embedded publication starting on page 394, which shows one of Stargate Scientific's adverts on rapid GMO testing. You will notice that the advert is in Afrikaans.One of the many benefits  of advertising in The Agri Handbook is that you can place an Afrikaans version of the same advert in Die Agri Handboek at no additional charge. And then you can embed the publication on your website, starting at your advert in the book.

Die Agri Handboek 2013-14 by Craig Macaskill

If this is too big, don't worry because you can make it smaller like this, or even smaller (using custom dimensions):

Die Agri Handboek 2013-14 by Craig Macaskill

By the way, if you haven't yet booked your advert in our next edition, please download the rate card below and get the benefit of the old pricing by booking as soon as possible.

AHB Advertiser Rate Card

Remember that everything above can be done for the English language edition of the publication as well, follow the same embedding instructions, but substitute The Agri Handbook for Die Agri Handboek.

We will post again here once the hard copy version of Die Agri Handboek is available. For now you can order the eBook CD-ROM which includes both the English and Afrikaans editions for only R150 inc VAT.

The ISBN Number for Die Agri Handboek is 978-0-620-56766-4, and for The Agri Handbook it is  978-0-620-55509-8.

Farming in Cape Town

Have you imagined producing your own vegetables, herbs and fish on a small scale for your own consumption or for a niche market?

In its latest issue, Landbouweekblad reports on something happening at the V&A Waterfront within the Mother City. Moyo restaurant, with initial help from Stellenbosch University, grows its own vegetables, herbs and fish using an aquaponics system.

Aquaoponics uses water from a fish tank to feed plants. Of course it isn't simply ordinary water. Thanks to the fish, it is rich with nutrients, specifically nitrates and phosphates, and these become the primary inputs for the plants. Leslie Ter Morshuizen, the major contributor to the aquaculture chapter in The Agri Handbook, writes that there are several benefits to aquaponics, including healthy plant roots, fewer pest problems, rapid growth and high production levels per unit area.

Read about urban agriculture, aquaculture, herbs and vegetables chapters in The Agri Handbook.

African infrastructure development

The African Development Bank (AfDB) is looking to create a large fund to finance infrastructure in Africa, Reuters reported recently (29 May 2013). The bank estimates that Africa requires investment of $100-billion every year for a decade. Infrastructure allows for economic activity and trade among countries, and the lack of sufficient infrastructure is often cited as an obstacle for intra-African trade.

It is a vital issue within individual countries too. When food prices are high and employment levels are low, it is time to do something about infrastructure. Infrastructure and agrologistics is a chapter under the National issues section of The Agri Handbook for South Africa.

Tales from Nampo

We live in a world where much clamours for our attention, proclaiming importance and significance, putting us in the wrong or making us feel uncertain. The sought-after result is for us to back whatever and whoever the speaker is, and to hand over our money.

The issue may be very important indeed, but the challenge is to discern what has substance and what consists mostly of noise and show. You may fly the right flag (good) -- what are you really offering?

There are media and event companies in agriculture which fly the transformation flag, and pretty much empty the marketing budgets of well-meaning role players in the process. Is their contribution to the sector and to the so-called emerging farmer sector real? At Nampo, one such company came to collect a copy of The Agri Handbook for South Africa. We duly handed over a book, albeit with great reservation.

There were no such misgivings when dropping off books at the Grain SA building and meeting three members -- one person in particular -- of the team responsible for farmer development. Surely the chances of success for training a new generation of farmers are heightened by the involvement of people like this! But go meet them yourself. Do some checking up on the work they are doing. Speak to people involved on the ground and form your own opinion.

When we pronounce on the moral right of an individual or company to exist we wander into dangerous territory. More often than not, persons we praise either have a fall ahead of them or have earned their stripes elsewhere on the journey.

Yet how thrilled we are when appearance and essence are the same! It may be just one individual in the organisation, offering up his or her work from an undivided self. Agriculture -- indeed the world -- is better of for their being here.

National Development Plan (NDP) - back in the spotlight

As the name suggests, the National Development Plan (NDP) is a plan -- surprise, surprise -- to develop the nation. It identifies the challenges facing the country and sketches solutions in order to triple the economy by 2030 while reducing unemployment and inequality levels. Although it is central to the Plan, the NDP goes beyond the economy looking also at issues like national unity. Find the National Development Plan (NDP) here.

In a meeting at the Chris Hani Institute recently, attended by both Jeremy Cronin and Bobby Godsell, attention has once again been focused on the NDP. Cronin is the deputy minister for Public Works, deputy general-secretary of the South African Communist Party (SACP) and an African National Congress National Executive Committee member.

Cronin's criticisms include:

• The negligible target for reducing inequality (from 0.7% to 0.6& on the Gini coefficient over the next 17 years). Not much of a target, is it?
• That the NDP forsees the manufacturing sector shrinking from 12% of gross domestic product to 9.6% in 2030.
• The NDP is not a state planning commission so how will the Plan be implemented?

For Cronin a broad vision needs to be built around reindustrialisation, the provision of infrastructure and the developing of skills.

Godsell, the current Business Leadership South Africa chairperson and someone well known in business circles, urged the meeting to view the Plan as a living document. The Plan was "eminently debatable".

There was agreement that a State planning entity working alongside a more independent, non-government body was a good thing. Godsell saw Government-only planning as having the tendency to be non-integrated (operating in silo's) and thus ineffective. It was good to have people not in government, thinking out of the box in addition to a State planning entity.

Both saw the NDP's planning for the long-term as a positive.

Agriculture, the Agricultural Business Chamber (Agbiz) in particular, has held the NDP as holding much promise for the country. Find the article written at the beginning of 2013 by Dr John Purchase here.

The NDP is covered in the Job creation chapter of The Agri Handbook for South Africa (in particular, see the "Ideas to promote economic growth" heading). In addition, many of the crop and livestock chapters have some reference to that particular sub-sector's potential to contribute to job creation, including the areas identified in the Industrial Policy Action Plans (IPAPs) like rooibos and organic produce.

We would like to think we are contributing to the debate.

Nampo time again

"What's Nampo?!"

Someone not familiar with the agricultural world may ask themselves this question, but for those of us who have been before it is a time of expectation, of seeing old faces and meeting new ones.

Nampo is covered in the Agricultural shows and events chapter in the Agri Handbook for South Africa 2013/14, and there are a few notes on Grain SA, the organisers, in the general Grain & oilseeds one.

Like this publication, Nampo is a gateway to agriculture in South Africa and draws mainly a farming audience from this country and beyond.

On several occasions, on having come across our publication at the show, visitors have said: "Now we can go home!" The comment is caused by the book's thorough coverage of the agricultural value chain in the country, and if you have the book or CD you can relax a bit more and enjoy the day.

Wear comfortable shoes because there is much to see and you will do a lot of walking! The event's website is www.nampo.co.za. Should you wish to look me up, you will probably find me near the ARC stalls at the PNS hall.

The Global Water Report: 2013 and South Africa

This year's Global Water Report suggests that, in South Africa, water demand will outstrip supply by as much as 17% by 2030. The report is run from London; its local anchor is the National Business Initiative [refer to www.nbi.org.za]. 

Life is all about our decisions and our deciding who we are. The same applies on a collective level. What can we do about this water scenario? Does this country's temperament have the capacity to change, collaborate, engage when it comes to use of our water resources?

In the Agri Handbook for South Africa 2013/14, there are several chapters dealing with water: Irrigation, Rainwater harvesting, Water storage, Wetlands, Boreholes & windmills -- and, under the National Issues section, a general chapter on water. Water is a national issue because:

• The necessity for water makes it a human security issue. Water is a key to stability in the lives of communities and to the growth of nations.
• Because South Africa is a water-scarce country, the water we have should be used wisely.
• Water-use behaviours can have a detrimental effect on the quality of our water. Industrial, mining and agricultural pollutants, as well as poor maintenance of waste water treatment works degrade our water and aquatic life.
• The costs to the economy of making increasingly toxic water fit for human consumption is an unnecessary, avoidable expense.
• The trading status of South African agricultural products, both for export and local, is threatened by the quality of water in some areas. The shadow goes further than the safety of the food to the very profitability of various businesses (read “jobs”). 

Find the general water chapter here.

South Africa - importer of agricultural products?

In April 2012, the Agricultural Business Chamber newsletter looked at the country's top imports and exports, for both primary and secondary agriculture. South Africa's trade balance had remained positive (we export more than we import). This report is looked at in the second chapter of the Agri Handbook for South Africa which can be found here.

South Africa had never been a net importer of primary agricultural products, even if we import more secondary (or processed) products than we export. Can't we produce the commodities that we are having to import? For this reason, secondary agriculture or agri-processing is identified in government's Industrial Policy Action Plans (IPAPs) as an area where jobs can be created.

It is with concern that we take note of the article "SA nou netto invoerder van landbouprodukte" [SA now a net importer of agricultural products] in the 12 April 2013 edition of Landbouweekblad, an article by Prof Johan Willemse.

In our earlier blog, "The case for unity in agriculture", we quoted the inspirational speaker Osho as saying that nothing significant happens without unity, and related this to South Africa's agricultural environment.We repeat this point, relevant as ever, today.

Livestock: how to green the world's deserts and reverse climate change

Allan Savory, thinking out-of-the-box, promotes livestock as the answer to desertification and climate change. "There is only one option left to climatologists and scientists, and that is to do the unthinkable: to use livestock, bunched and moving, as a proxy for former herds and predators, and to mimic nature".

It goes counter to traditional thinking, of course, but hear his talk and see what you think.

The Expropriation Bill, 2013

The Expropriation Bill, 2013, has been gazetted for public comment. Find it on the www.polity.org.za website or click here. It is one of the means, in the year of the centenary of the 1913 Natives Land Act, to rectify South Africa's past.

Several chapters in The Agri Handbook deal with this topic, including Legislation & legal aid, Developing farmer support and Land reform.

Boost for the aquaculture sector in South Africa

Ever thought of diversifying into fish farming?

Government launched the Agriculture Development and Enhancement Programme (Adep), an R800 million aquaculture programme, towards the end of March to encourage greater interest in the aquaculture sector.

The aquaculture chapter of the Agri Handbook (click here) includes a business plan, an orientation of the sector, contact details of role players and sources of information should you wish to know more.

"Farmworker Spring" article

In his article "Farmworker Spring" published by SA The Good News, Christopher Rowbone-Viljoen says:

"One can generally determine the health of an industry by assessing whether the number of players in the industry has grown. In the case of commercial farmers, since 1994, the numbers have declined from 120,000 to 37,000 ... A one-size-fits-all, 51% wage increase is clearly not the answer if government wants to create jobs in an industry that has already shed an estimated 400,000 jobs since 1994.

"Using grape growers as an example, over the past 5 years production costs have steadily increased while grape prices have declined, coupled with unforeseen disasters such as the flooding experienced along the Orange River in 2011. These are marginal farms teetering on the verge of collapse. For many farmers, wages can form up to 40-50% of their entire production cost. In an environment where prices are declining, they will be left with no choice but to close their doors or shed further jobs".

Read an update in this blog.

In The Agri Handbook for South Africa, job creation is a theme is many of the chapters, as well as being a chapter all on its own in the National Issues section. Find it here.

Growing Africa: World Bank agribusiness report

There is space for Africa’s food market to triple in value, says the latest World Bank report Growing Africa: Unlocking the Potential of Agribusiness. The market is currently valued at $313-billion a year.

The report comes in a context of a continued decline in sub-Saharan Africa’s share of agricultural exports. Countries like Brazil, Indonesia and Thailand export more agricultural products than all of sub-Saharan Africa together.

The report encourages countries to “harness investors’ interest in ways that generate jobs, provide opportunities for smallholders, respect the rights of local communities, and protect the environment."

A growing middle class on the continent, more expensive tastes, an anticipated boom in supermarkets and higher commodity prices are given as reasons.

Rice, poultry, dairy, vegetable oils, horticulture, feed grains and processed foods for local markets are identified as areas most likely to do well.

Kenya, Ghana, Cameroon, Malawi and Zambia are mentioned as examples of those already tapping into these markets, and it is farmers with greater access to credit, willing to modernize their practices, to make use of fertilizer, irrigation and new technologies that are leading the way.

Find the World Bank report here.

Relevant to this report in The Agri Handbook for South Africa are the Fertiliser, Speciality fertilisers and Irrigation chapters. There will be several others, of course (there are nearly 180 chapters in all!) Take a look at Precision farming and Hydroponics & undercover growing for example.

Job creation

In its ‘Economic Survey of South Africa 2013’, presented to Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan yesterday (4th March), the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)  emphasised that boosting the country's "dismally low" employment should form the hallmark of all South Africa's policies. It pointed out that our very unsatisfactory educational outcomes aggravate the oversupply of unskilled labour and worsen the income inequality.

That there are problems with our educational system is not news to us, of course.  It is a subject in the National Development Plan, the President's State of the Nation address and we are familiar with news stories like the late delivery of textbooks. [Readers who are interested in what is happening in skills development should take a look at our sister publication and website at www.skillshandbook.co.za].

The OECD survey deals with other aspects too and the reader will find the survey on www.oecd.org.

Job creation is a new chapter in the Agri Handbook for South Africa, appropriately situated in the "National issues" section. Like everything else, agriculture has a context, finding itself uncomfortably affected by processes which we would love to wish away.

Find the job creation chapter here.

Our global food economy

The food economy brings problems not unique to South Africa (see previous blog, The case for unity in agriculture). We have a problem, World. This problem is global, and it keeps the poor shut out.

“With a child dying every six seconds because of undernourishment-related problems, hunger remains the world’s largest tragedy and scandal,” says FAO Director-General Jacques Diouf.

The case for unity in agriculture

Unity in agriculture?

Our society is divided. This was identified by the National Planning Commission as one of the country’s challenges. Although there are times when there are bridges and we fly a common flag, the issues coming from our past present a great challenge to agriculture.

We might produce the best grapes and have amongst us some of the best farmers in the world, but if there is division in the sector then at best this country will only be a mediocre player in world markets. (At the time of writing, some from within the country are calling for a boycott of our own fruit!) Nothing significant happens without unity, said the writer Osho, and he could well have been commenting on the state of this country.

How do we get there? Is it possible?

The same Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP) report which found that the R150 per day wage demand would render most farms unprofitable also found that even on R150 a day it would still be difficult for those workers to buy nutritious food. The food economy that we have built is unkind to both farmer and farmworker. Doesn't that means that farmer and farmworker are on the same side?

Emerson called producing food the glory of the farmer. "The food which was not, he causes to be". Farmers take risks to do this - economic, climate and socio-political being amongst them. If the food economy rewarded farmers more for their produce, the farmer would be able to pay a better wage. The dairy farmer received around R3 for that litre of milk you paid R9 for!

Some say that the tension leads to a vibrant, democratic society. True, if there is a shared awareness of our oneness and a sense that we are all in the same boat. In such a continuum, although there might be conflict there also comes resolution. No one gets exactly what they want, but there is give-and-take all around. The leaders are shrewd and get the best deal for their constituencies – without killing the goose from which the golden egg is laid.

The major challenges to agriculture in 2013 will be the ones stemming from our divided past. We need to do our damnest to ensure that our land reform and empowerment programmes succeed.

But let us remember that there are also deep fault lines running through the economy, specifically the food economy. And these fault lines run underneath all we are trying to accomplish in agriculture and in rural development. This presents the strongest case for us to remember kindness and patience as we pursue our goals.