Doing it on a tractor

As an 11-year old I would get back from school, wolf down lunch and head out to "the lands" when my father's fleet of tractors was ploughing. It was a delight to the senses: the smell and feel of freshly turned soil; the birds following in the tractors' wake; and once on it, the noise, smell and motion of the tractor.

The trek to the other side of the field lasted an eternity but was a type of nirvana or dream where the only thing that existed was the feel of the wheel in my hands and the day up until that point faded away like an irrelevance.

Perhaps Tractor Girl, Manon Ossevoort, had similar memories and decided to take them to new heights. In one of those follow-your-dream stories, she set out to drive a Massey Ferguson MF 5610 "all the way to the geographical South Pole".

Above : Manon Ossevoort and her team. The photo is from the expedition's website.

 Ossevoort, who hails from the Netherlands, and her back-up team travelled the tough 2 500 km and arrived at their destination last week. They are currently engaged in the return journey. Get updates and more on the expedition at the website http://www.antarcticatwo.com.

Find the Tractors, combines and balers chapter in The Agri Handbook here. Updated statistics on national sales can be found on the South African Agricultural Machinery Association (SAAMA) website.

Farmers, bankers, conservationists (part 3)

Upon arrival at Treetops Farm, we had refreshments and the first of the presentations.

Some of the labour practices on the farm are commendably pragmatic. For example, when a very hot day is forecaste, work begins earlier than normal, and once the assigned tasks are completed the staff go home (this in the late morning!) to avoid the heat.

 A waste management/recycling programme is run with spinoffs for the labour force (a funeral had been paid for from these funds a few days earlier). 

When used, agrochemicals are applied manually for targeted and effective application. Spraying from the air (by airplane or helicopter) can have unintended consequences on beneficial insects like bees and spiders. In addition to sugarcane, Treetops runs a beekeeping operation.

 We heard about various other aspects of operations at the farm, and files showing the paperwork behind the operation were made available to us – training, fertilizer, diesel and so on.

Jessica Cockburn (left) and extension officer Paul Botha introduced SUSFARMS, the Sustainable Sugarcane Farm Management System designed by the South African Sugarcane Research Institute (SASRI) and funded by the WWF. This simple but thorough user guide takes the farmer through a check list of better management practices (BMPs). A farmer using SUSFARMS will find he has complied with legislation whilst maintaining high social, economic and environmental standards.

We set off in convoy to witness some of the features of this farm operation that had won it the Nedbank Sustainable Farm Award in 2014. 

Roy McGladdery (left) demonstrated how vegetated waterways look after the soil. Trees are also being planted in the waterways to provide shelter from the sun and to encourage birdlife.

The 12 checks for waterways in SUSFARMS include: they are not used as roads or paths; they allow the free flow of surface water; they are sited at the lowest point of selected natural depressions, and; they have been planted with a creeping grass suitable to the area.

After one or two more stops on the farm, I looked around and noticed that the magic and inspiration of it all had cast a glow over everyone. One of the Nedbank staff, doing studies in ethics, spoke jubilantly about how she had found a subject for a thesis - to do with labour relations on this farm. McGladdery doesn't look the type who smiles gratuitously but by this time he was all smiles, basking in the joy of sharing with us a farming operation which simply makes such common sense!

There was no immediate rush when all was over, even though there were flights to be caught. People gathered in twos and threes, or in larger groups around McGladdery or the team leaders, content to wait for a while longer before the trips home to Cape Town, Johannesburg, Pretoria - wherever - began.

Farmers, bankers, conservationists (part 2)

I began the last blog by saying “Some farmers make it all seem so easy!” Perhaps they do, but it wouldn’t do them justice to leave it there. The ease with which everything comes together speaks of much that went before – but we’ll get to that shortly.

The second day of the excursion began with a hearty breakfast and a checking out of Rawdons. A fairly lengthy bus trip took us north, past Wartburg, to hear about work with the Swayamani Small Growers.

 The reader should understand that agriculture has a dual nature in this country. On the one hand, there are large commercial operations. As profit margins shrunk over the past two decades, the farming landscape changed. As is the case elsewhere in the world, fewer farmers are in business now but the size of their operations increased. This was a necessity to take advantage of economies of scale. Where does this leave the small scale farmer (or “small holder” or whatever name we choose for farmers who do not fit into that commercial farmer category)?

There is always a challenge when forming agricultural collectives. How best to pool resources and try get economies of scale happening? As we viewed the patchwork of teeming life below us we heard about the issues and progress in this area. The miller who receives cane from these small holders. What the influences on the small holders choice of land use are. Is it more economical to put a fence around the cattle or around the piece of land with sugarcane?

Industry associations do a lot of work to develop this sector of agriculture, and in the case of sugarcane it is no different. The Developing farmer support chapter of The Agri Handbook covers the topic.

We did not return the way we had come. Just outside of Pietermaritzburg we had passed burning tyres and stones in the road, the beginning of social unrest, and so choose  instead to continue down to Cato Ridge and come back up the N3 to Treetops Farm, near Eston, our final visit.

Farmers, bankers, conservationists (part 1)

When Roy McGladdery spoke of winning the Nedbank Sustainable Farm Award for best farming practice, how he'd insisted on the whole farm work force being in the photograph with the oldest worker holding the trophy, I felt tears well up in my eyes. Some farmers make it all seem so easy!

I was part of a press contingent ushered to various projects in KwaZulu-Natal last week – 12^th and 13^th November. Our hosts were a combined team from Nedbank and World Wide Fund for Nature South Africa (WWF SA).

We began the two days at Rawdons Lodge in the KZN Midlands (left). After brunch (below) there were three presentations.

Hold on. The WWF SA and agriculture? They're conservationists, aren’t they?

Sustainable Agriculture, championed by the WWF SA-Nedbank partnership, is similar to what others call Biological Farming or Natuurboerdery (Nature Farming). It is not as strict as organic farming (where the use of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides and GMOs are prohibited) but it's halfway there from conventional farming. Nedbank, in its turn, is contributing over ZAR17-million (around USD 1.5-million) to programmes like this over three years.

Limited availability of water, land and energy has placed agriculture/food security at a crossroads. And the health of our natural systems is deeply linked to all of this, explains Inge Kotze (senior manager of the Programme). More information on Sustainable Agriculture will be published in the 2015/16 edition of The Agri Handbook.

A water overview was given by Christine Colvin (WWF Freshwater Senior Manager), and out at John Campbell’s farm, Helen Gordon spoke of the Water Balance Programme. The clearing of invasive alien species is one of the vital water supply  interventions identified in the 2004 National Water Resource Strategy and this was what we had come to see.

At Ivanhoe Farm we were moved out of buses to a convoy of bakkies (“light utility vans”, for our overseas readers). The farm lies at the beginnings of the Umgeni River Catchment area, which in its totality is responsible for a fifth of South Africa’s GDP. No wonder it is viewed as a catchment area of particular ecological and socio-economical importance!

We travelled on rough roads through beautifully green territory. Between the mist we saw wattle crane (an endangered species in this country) standing content on the far side of the some of the several hundred hectares of wetlands that exist on Ivanhoe. The major operations on the farm are potatoes and Brangus beef cattle, and there were perhaps sixty head of cattle where we disembarked. Some broke from the serious business of grazing to skip and fool around, perhaps because they saw the cameras. Just kidding. I don't think they even knew we were there, they were so content under the Midlands skies.

The weather changed. It became increasingly difficult to hear the presentation for the rain which pelted us in the ears and face. We retired to the farm sheds where we heard more and had opportunity to ask questions. 

“There are no rats here,” Campbell said proudly afterwards, and I looked up from the immaculate space around us to where he was motioning. Above us, owl boxes were interspersed at various points of the shed. 

We headed back to Rawdons in our vehicles for an hour or so's leisure time before assembling for dinner at 19h00. 

Find the chapters covering water, invasive alien species and birds (wattled crane and owls) in the 2013/14 edition of The Agri Handbook.

AMCU, FAWU and Numsa to strike again for 1% pay rise

Just kidding. But it is the amount that the National Health Service (NHS) in the UK are on strike for.

Here in South Africa it is more common to demand double digit pay rises. The Communication Workers Union (CWU), for example, is currently demanding a 15% pay rise.

The strikes are mainly viewed with annoyance or alarm by business owners and other people who don't strike (find the Zapiro satirical cartoon of the CWU, for example). But perhaps the 2014 Pietermaritzburg Agency for Community Social Action (PACSA) Food Price Barometer gives us food for thought.

Poor and working class households spend most of their money on food. Well, this is after other expenses - funerals, electricity, furniture repayments, transport and school fees ... Money spent on food must adapt to what is left. The figure that statisticians bandy about is actually different to what SHOULD be spent on food, and actually hides "the food affordability crisis in South Africa". 

The Core staples measured in the Barometer include maize meal, rice, flour, bread, potatoes, sugar and oil. These are increasingly more expensive and unaffordable, and as the price increases the poor settle for cheaper brands.

Um, what happens when they can no longer afford the cheaper brands ...?

What's for dinner, luv?

Four blocks from where I live is an intersection on Louis Botha Avenue where unemployed men wait during the day, hoping that someone will offer them a job. That's not permanent employment, just something to keep hunger at bay.

South Africa is food secure as a country -- but 14-million people do not know where their next meal will come from. And another 15-million are only just not as desperate.

Some talk of the nature of agriculture, that increasingly it exists to produces food for the wealthy. Others roll up their sleeves and get on with teaching the vulnerable to grow food gardens. Some, like the Mail & Guardian newsroom, have a challenge out today to try live this day on #6Rand [just over half an American dollar], like many of the people in this country do.

At the same time, the world's scandal is that one-third of the food produced is wasted and lost. Find the Youtube clip, just over three minutes, on this.

Today is the United Nations' World Food Day.

Today, especially, food should be eaten with great awareness.

Find the chapter on food security in The Agri Handbook here.

Do penguins eat white maize or yellow maize?

Hats off to Dr Herman van Schalkwyk, CEO of the AMT, for including a contribution by Philip Lymbery, author of Farmageddon and CEO of Compassion in Worldwide Farming, at the AMT Conference in the week just passed.

The book and the presentation pose serious questions to future scenarios of agriculture.

Included in the opening slides by Lymbery was one of penguins, victims of recent trends in agriculture: food which is in their diet has been removed (to feed animals in industrial farming) and this has led to some very hungry penguins.

We were expecting more challenges from the audience which included a prominent GMO activist and several agribusinesses with some stake in intensive meat production enterprises (also referred to as "factory farming" and "industrial farming").

There were two contributions from the floor. The first, a humorous enquiry whether penguins preferred white or yellow maize (corn). The second, a professor from the University of the Free State, thanked Lymbery for his presentation and said he felt agriculture in this country had not reached the same levels of industrialisation as elsewhere in the world, but that the presentation was a welcome marker to be borne in mind for the future.

We don't know if we agree completely with the last sentiment (there are several intensive meat production enterprises is this country). Nonetheless, it is International Animal week this week (4 to 10 October) and the question about how we treat our animals is one the globe faces, not just this week but every week!

Lost opportunities: another ten-year look ahead

Prices for meat, dairy and fish worldwide are expected to rise faster than those for cereals over the next decade. This is according to the latest OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook which is released every year.

In Africa, although production of meat and cereals is expected to increase over the next decade, consumption will grow faster. This will be a result of increased population levels rather than individuals eating more than normal.

As the editorial comment in the CTA's Bi-weekly Agricultural Update points out, this will result in "increased import dependency" and can be seen as "a lost opportunity for African producers". More than ever before, African states need to pay more than just lip service to the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP).

Agricultural trade between Russia, China, Brazil steps up

We all knew there would be a vacuum to be filled after Russia banned agricultural products from the countries which had slapped sanctions on her -- the USA, EU, Canada and Australia (with Germany, Poland, the Netherlands, France, Italy and Spain being the biggest losers in the tit-for-tat move).

It is with interest we read this evening that China and Brazil have begun (or are about to begin) stepping into the gap. China will supply vegetables and fruit, and import grain, rapeseed (canola) and honey from Russia. Brazil will supply dairy products (and surely meat products? Russia used to be a major market for Brazil until 2011). Brazil will in turn import fish and grains from Russia.

On RT, find the Russia-China and Russia-Brazil articles.

Scotland votes: William Wallace and tomorrow

You think I'm curious about tomorrow and the Scottish vote? You bet I am! I have followed the 18th September vote with great interest. Although it's in the other hemisphere, it’s very much a humanity vote, and which way will it go?

Tomorrow has been compared by some here with the 27 April 1994 vote, a day which heralded democratic rule after centuries of colonialism and then apartheid. It’s as significant, of course. I'm not sure how far to take that comparison. Apartheid was sold, to the white population anyway (and some of the black elite), as self determination: "Here's some land for the Zulus, there's some land for the Xhosas, there's some land for the [etc] ... and here is our land. You may work here, but your own country is over there". On the 27 April 1994, the people living across South Africa (at least 11 "nations" as there are 11 official languages!) all expressed confidence in the very diverse mix that is this country. In many ways it was a "Better together" vote.

The human psyche loves the I-thou, us-them definition. We know who we are if we have drawn a line in the sand to separate us from the other. And we use these lines for far more than nationality (do some reading up if you are not familiar with Jung's idea of Shadow)!

What if we are all on the same side?

The clans of Scotland are its glory. The lines between them have also been its weakness. The land was kept in servitude, subjugated through a divide-and-rule strategy by outsiders. Clans and classes were turned against each other. What William Wallace had to contend with!

Some have taken cynical advantage of unity, of course, and people are drafted into wars which have nothing to do with them! What did the Scots have to do with Blair's Iraq or Cameron's adventure in Libya? How sincere is "Better together"?

Tomorrow raises interesting questions for various corners of the globe (sshh! and some discomfort). What about the Ukraine? Spain, Morocco and China? There are reports this evening that the Shetland Islands would consider their own independent future if Scotland secedes from the U.K. (so much for Scotland's dreams of wealth from oil!) My goodness, what about Lesotho? Some have suggested incorporating that country as the 10th province of South Africa. Remember also that the US fought its civil war to prevent the Southern States from going it alone.

It's understandable that we want boundaries, but what if the lines we draw are artificial and we are more than the human beings wanting to mark off our own caves? It might take centuries still for us to learn this but what if we are all actually on the same side?

Shucks! Until then, let's make our way as best as we can with the light that we have ...

Going to Pretoria this year?

At the end of this month, September 30, the AMT South African Annual Agricultural Outlook Conference will be held once again at the CSIR International Convention Centre, Pretoria, South Africa.

Presentations are done on aspects across the agricultural value chain.

• Vusi Thembekwayo’s presentation will be titled “Leading at the edge of chaos”.
• The futurist, Neil Jacobsohn will discuss “Thriving inside the Perfect Storm – Finding opportunity in an world of radical change”.
• Daniel Silke will address the conference on “Outcome of the 2014 Election and the Effect on SA Agriculture 2015”.
• Mike Schüssler will present the Domestic and Global Economic Outlook 2015: Prospects for higher and sustained economic growth in the medium term.”
• Johan van den Berg (Santam Agriculture) will give a Weather Outlook for 2015 – Climate variability and climate change in the agricultural context.”
• Ernst Janovsky, (ABSA Agribusiness) will provide the global and SA outlook for the supply and demand of grains, oilseeds and livestock.”

The Keynote speaker will be Philip Lymbery from the UK with his presentation “Farmageddon: The true cost of Cheap meat – the Dark side of the Global Food system”.

A panel discussion on land reform, the economic and political future and how the different sectors will be influenced by these, will follow.

Find the programme with booking form here. Alternatively, find "Conference proceedings" on the Agrimark Trends website.

Unearthed: farm girl's award-winning international movie

The documentary Unearthed, by local farm girl Jolynn Minnaar near Graaff-Reinet, is drawing international attention. Its topic? Hydraulic fracturing (fracking) ...

Like many who grow up in rural areas or on a farm, Minnaar loved the wide uninhabited space of the Karoo. And when plans were revealed to frack for shale gas, she went to the U.S.A. better to understand the technology. Here she found the consequences of fracking to be rather unlike the promises her rural community had been given.

The production team believe the documentary to be the widest collection of material on fracking available. At the international film festival in Sheffield, England, in June it won the "Green Award". It is voted by many to be the best South African movie this year. Find the trailer on Youtube or at www.un-earthed.com. A shorter documentary by the same team, The Fracking Facade, is essential viewing.

Last week, Minnaar won the 2014 "Woman of the Year: Change Agent" title by Glamour Magazine.

It's a small world: wheat in Russia and the Ukraine

The latest news from the commodity trading boys is that tension between Russia and the Ukraine, two of the world's key wheat suppliers, is not affecting wheat prices. This will remain true, of course, as long as the weather smiles on the crop in other countries like France and the USA. The International Grains Council has raised its 2014/15 world wheat production forecast from 702 million tonnes to 713 million.

It's a small world and South Africa is vulnerable to what happens elsewhere. You see, the country could, but doesn't, grow enough wheat for itself because of the government's almost total non-interference in the free market context. Hopefully one day the global community's interconnectedness will play a greater role in the way we treat each other. For now, here's to the weather! 

Find the commodity trading chapter in The Agri Handbook here. The wheat chapter is here.

Livestock, living stock and recently departed beasts

Many of us enjoy meat products, and the work of various red meat organisations mean that we do so with a measure of confidence that the process of turning live animal to meat product was a humane one. Our meal may be accompanied with a silent thank-you to the recently departed beast (which is what "saying grace" before meal time in most religious communities is meant to be about) but we don't think of it again, or at least not until the next meal.

But let me tell you about the time we changed the name of the section dealing with animals in an earlier edition of our book from "Livestock" to "Living stock". It happened literally minutes before PDFing the publication for print, nearly ten years back, a knee-jerk response to a horror story of meat that was distributed -- while the animal was still alive and in a clamp! "Living stock" was to make the point that the term  "livestock" no longer does, namely that animals are stock which live i.e. livestock. And being alive, they feel sensations like pain, hunger and thirst. Needless to say, the red meat organisations too voiced their horror at the incident.

I regretted my impulsiveness before the book came back from the printers. I certainly regretted it afterwards but weathered the storm (which included a scolding from an academic: "It's 'livestock', never 'living stock'"!) and we duly reverted to "livestock" and "animal husbandry" in subsequent editions.

Did you know that some agriculture avoids animals and animal products completely (read about vegan organic farming here)?

Quite an interesting article appeared in the U.K.'s The Guardian at the close of last week. The owner of a new restaurant paid a visit to the abattoir that would process her meat. Interestingly, the animals are gassed with CO2 -- prodders and stun guns aren't used. Read about it here.

Abattoirs in one of the nearly 180 chapters in The Agri Handbook.

The EU: the great agro-food exporter

The EU remains the world's leading agro-food exporter (€120 billion in exports). It is also the world's largest importer of agricultural products, but has enjoyed an agricultural trade surplus since 2010: more goes out than comes in. Last year's surplus is pegged at €18.6 billion.

South Africa recorded a high growth rate in exports to the EU in 2013, mainly with fruits and wine.

Only 2.8% of EU agro-food imports are from least developed countries (LDCs), but the figure is larger than that the LDC exports to Canada, the US, Australia, New Zealand and Japan combined.

Up to now, Russia has been the second biggest export market for the EU (developing countries are the EU's number one market). We are yet to see what the damage will be as a result of the recent volley of sanctions. An interesting chart accompanies the report Which foods are off Russian menus on CNN.

Find the European Commission report Agricultural trade in 2013: EU gains in commodity exports.

The value of the African fish

For those of you who may have missed it, The Value of African Fish on the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) website provides a fascinating read.

The fisheries sector in Africa employs around 2.1 per cent of her population. About 7.5% of these work with aquaculture, 42.2% are processors and the rest are fishers.

But here is the interesting thing:

Non-African countries account for 25% of marine catches around Africa. This is worth (in theory) "US$3.3 billion, which is eight times higher than the current US$0.4 billion African countries earn from fisheries agreements." Is this another example of the continent exporting jobs?

The aquaculture in The Agri Handbook can be accessed here.

R3-million research fund launched in the Western Cape

The Western Cape's alternative crops received a boost this week when the provincial government announced the launch of a R3-million research fund to run for this financial year.

The aim is to strengthen exports and land reform around these crops which include berries, fynbos, honeybush and pomegranates. They are export-orientated and have high market value.

Find the media release here.

Agriculture and Africa's challenges

Africa's leaders placed agriculture high on the agenda at the African Union Heads of State and Government assembly last month by signing the Malabo Declaration.

Included in the Declaration is:

• A call for governments to recommit to the Comprehensive African Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP). The CAADP calls on countries to commit 10% of their national budgets to agriculture.  
• An undertaking to increase both public and private investment finance in agriculture

Agriculture holds out a solution for a number of the challenges affecting Africa, specifically food security and youth unemployment.

We know the theory; can we put it into practice?

Africa and agriculture is the opening chapter in the 2013/14 edition of The Agri Handbook. Find it here.

Russian counter-sanctions to hit European farmers

In the news tonight, Russia has banned the import of agricultural produce from countries that have imposed sanctions on it.

This is bad news for European farmers. Russia has been an important market for agricultural produce. Although the ban will affect all EU countries and the US, Polish fruit, vegetables and pig meat and Dutch fruit and vegetables will suffer the greatest impact.

It is acknowledged that the move may cause food prices to rise. Find the UK's The Guardian report here and BBC's here. For a look at what's being said on "the other side" (always a good idea) find what RT has to say here.

US-Africa Leaders Summit: music to the ears?

Heads of state of most African countries will be in Washington DC August 4-6 for the US-Africa Leaders Summit and so will some of Africa’s top musicians who plan to entertain with a message. Find the story on AFKInsider here.

Briefly, the ONE Campaign launched “Do Agric” in January to support the 2014 Year of Agriculture proclaimed by the African Union (AU). Growth in agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa today is estimated to be 11 times more powerful at reducing poverty than growth in other sectors such as mining and utilities.

Take a look at the story on ONE’s report, “Ripe for Change: The Promise of Africa’s Agricultural Transformation” here along with the link to download it.

Let the music play!

Wisdom from China on Gaza

[The news is bad tonight. Bear with us as we digress from agriculture for one blog ...]

We look at the turmoil and ignorance in Gaza and we are reminded of lines which appeared in China, centuries ago, wisdom which is as relevant now as it was then.

         "There is no greater misfortune
          than underestimating your enemy.
          Underestimating your enemy
          means thinking that he is evil.
         Thus you destroy your three treasures [simplicity, patience, compassion]
         and become an enemy yourself"

The lines are from the Tao Te Ching (Mitchell's version).

Southern Africa and the EU: Economic Partnership Agreement finalised

This month (July 2014) saw the negotiations for an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between Southern African countries and the European Union (EU) finalised. The EU is this region's largest trading partner.

Last year, the EU exports here were pegged at €33 billion. From Southern Africa its main imports are diamonds, precious stones and minerals, fish, sugar, fruit and nuts.

Find the European Commission press release here.

Fracking to go ahead (fullsteam) in UK

"The government has fired the starting gun on a reckless race for shale that could see fracking rigs go up across the British countryside, including in sensitive areas such as those covering major aquifers ..." [This includes national parks and areas of outstanding natural beauty (AONBs)]. Find the report in the UK's The Guardian newspaper here. Included in the report is a map of where hydraulic fracturing (fracking) may well proceed.

Fracking is also a grim potential in South Africa where, despite evidence of the environmental Armageddon to follow, fracking continues to be spoken about by zombie-looking politicians, as a "game changer", politicians who have surely forgotten what the earth feels like under bare feet, or the taste of pure water in the mouth.

Read the other side of the story on websites like those of Treasure The Karoo Action Group (TKAG). Shale gas mining is (1) unsustainable (2) water thirsty (3) poses environmental risk.

Mandela day and going beyond ourselves

The 18 July is Nelson Mandela day and is observed internationally. People are encouraged to make a change somewhere by volunteering 67 minutes of their time and expertise.

A rather cynical piece popped up in the day's wake, Mandela Day: a post-colonial exercise in the commodification of the good black on the Thoughtleader website.

Is cynicism wrong? People who see the glass as half empty (instead of half full) can always congratulate themselves on their "realism", and how smug they feel when things don't turn out as others had hoped! But cynicism is so old and doesn't go anywhere. People like Mandela and Gandhi point to new possibilities in being human; to a different, inclusive picture of what we can become ...

Anyone who sees Mandela as just a "good black" doesn't see him at all! People like Mandela and Gandhi evolve beyond their constituencies, and their subsequent example encourages the human race to go beyond its Whiteness, Blackness, Hinduness, Jewishness etc. If we can't do that for 67 minutes, what hope is there?

On pigs and ignorance

The love of money is not the root of all evil. Ignorance is. If we could know and feel the consequences of our actions we would change what we say and do.

The weekend brought news of another new-on-the-land project which has ended in great suffering for animals. Livestock had been without food and water for a number of days. Pigs began eating other pigs. Sheep, goats and ducks had also died. The farm was owned by the chairperson of the National Council of Provinces (NCOP), Thandi Modise. Find the story here. Her explanation is that the farm manager was given leave and the replacement had not turned up. Modise is reported as saying: "I am not a farmer. I am trying to farm. I am learning. But if you are a woman and you are learning you are not allowed to make mistakes."

This is not about a lack of agricultural skills. If those involved were aware of the pain caused by their thoughtlessness there would not be this scandal. This is a failure in management and a gross failure of follow through and responsibility. And is the subsequent political point scoring by opposition parties doing any good? We're getting stuck here. The animals are forgotten and it's all about us. 

Come on! We can do better than this.

The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP): what's in a name?

Feta cheese has long been a favourite of mine. It augments, lifts up, enhances any salad or pizza to a mouth-watering experience!

Feta, and other foods, are the sticking points in negotiations over a free trade agreement called the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). US Secretary of State for Agriculture Tom Vilsack says that feta should be seen a process, not a place. European officials disagree, and so the spats continue over Geographical indications (GIs).

South Africa has had its experience over these GIs when it came to marketing wine overseas, with various terms long used (like "champagne") suddenly contentious.

Find the article "EU, US face food labelling spat in TTIP talks" here.

2014 AMT programme finalised

The programme for the annual Agrimark Trends (AMT) conference has been finalised.

Amongst the usual analyses of political, economic, financial and climatic data and patterns, this year includes a slot by Philip Lymbery, author of Farmageddon: The True Cost of Cheap Meat.

The AMT is billed as "one of the premier agribusiness networking opportunities where business leaders and policy makers meet to shape the future of the South African agribusiness industry."

There are early bird discounts for booking and payment by the end of June 2014. Find information and a booking form here, or in Afrikaans here.

South Africa expects one of its biggest maize (corn) crops

Word from the national Crop Estimates Committee is that this year will see the largest maize crop in more than three decades. Find these estimates on the National Agricultural Marketing Council (NAMC) website.

This country is not a major producer in international terms and farmers are price takers. Internationally, there are already adequate supplies of maize, wheat and soya, and a bumper crop at home will mean pressure on prices paid to grain producers. Those who have contracts in place will breathe a sigh of relief. Others will store maize until prices are better.

Of course this is all good news for livestock farmers though (grain is a component of animal feeds).

Find the commodity trading and Grain storage & handling chapters in The Agri Handbook

Farmers paid-to-plant-peas-and-beans controversy

Farmers are custodians over much of the countryside and their nation's biodiversity. Should there be a financial incentive for them to do this function? What if looking after the country's biodiversity cuts across their being profitable?

Wonderful ideas like conservancies exist for farmers to conserve the land whilst earning a living. However there are also areas of controversy like dealing with stock losses owing to wildlife (like rooikat/caracul and jakkal) on the farm. Compare the websites of role players like the Predation Management Forum and the Landmark Foundation to get an idea of the different viewpoints. This evening there is a report, EU wildlife grants will be used to grow crops, that is also generating debate.  

How do farmers in modern agriculture remain profitable whilst factoring in issues like biodiversity?

Find the section on resources and good agricultural practice in The Agri Handbook. It is opened by the first chapter, Biodiversity and ecosystem services.

Juicy maggots

There are places in the world where people eat insects, yes ... But why not feed insects to the usual livestock - fish, chickens and so on?

AgriProtein, a South African company, and others in the USA, France and Canada are going into the farming of flies full time! Maggots come from flies, of course, and maggots are the equivalent of juicy steaks for poultry and other livestock! Yum yum! Imagine ... "Farming with flies". That has quite a ring about it!

Find the article Are maggots the future of food? or check out the AgriProtein website.

The Afrikaans version of The Agri Handbook

Kyk na die inleiding (tussen 4 en 5 minute) wat op kykNET se Dagbreek program verskyn het.

Die boek is 'n gratis aflaai (sien onder "order" op hierdie webwerf).

• Klik op die boek waaronder staan "PDF Die Agri Handboek (Afrikaans) PDF download (free)"
• Klik op die rooi “Add to cart”. ’n Rooi kolletjie beweeg bo. Klik op “cart” regs bo.
• Klik op “Check out”
• “Your contact email”. Dit is belangrik dat jy jou epos hier korrek invul. Die ander besonderhede is nie van uiters belang maar daar moet iets in die blokkies staan. Onder, klik op “Continue to next step”
• Klik op “Complete my purchase”
• Wag vir die eposte wat jou bestelling bevestig en daarna wat vir jou ‘n skakkel gee, iets soos http://rainbowsa.fetchapp.com/get/ocijip
• Klik hierop, en daarna op Die Agri Handboek 2013-14-ver-1.5.pdf (52.2 MB)

Na ’n paar minute kyk onder “Downloads” op jou rekenaar. Die PDF behoort daar te wees. Laat ons weet asb. indien daar enige probleme is met die aflaai. Rig 'n epos na craig [by] agrihandbook [punt] co [punt] za

Not paying for toll road: farmer gets away with it

Did you know that back in 2006, South African National Roads Agency Ltd (SANRAL) was found to have badly failed in its obligation "to consult with local residents affected by the tolling concession ... for the N4 Maputo Development Corridor Toll Road"?

Judge Phineas Mojapelo handed down a judgement in favour of farmer Mr Nicolaas Smit, who had refused to pay toll and been criminally charged. Smit was found not guilty because the toll road in question had not been lawfully declared as such. There had been no "proper public consultation process."

SANRAL will soon need to start court cases against many more Nicolaas Smits in Gauteng, the country's business hub, as many "clients" are not paying astronomical monthly fees (over USD100). They can, of course, halve this by buying an e-tag. This is something like paying a bribe whereby you acknowledge the legitimacy of e-tolls in exchange for a lighter fee.

Watch the clip Gauteng eTolls Make No Sense; and read more on the Opposition to Urban Tolling Alliance website.

African Farmer game: master all the risks in a safe location

Have you tried playing the African Farmer?

The game simulates the complex decisions and uncertainties faced by small-scale farmers living in Sub-Saharan Africa.

• Your challenge is to manage a farming household in a village. You need to make decisions on what to grow, what to buy and how to feed your family – and then see the results of those decisions.
• You must take care of your farm and your family’s health – but watch out for price rises, bad weather and disease!

By simulating real-life challenges the game is a perfect learning tool – and free online.

Ringing the changes in South African agribusiness

The "joint cautionary announcement" that Senwes and NWK Holdings are negotiating a merger is significant news indeed.

In the last century, agricultural co-operatives established commercial agriculture in South Africa. The changes introduced in 1994 went beyond the political, moving the economy away from a protected environment to being one of the freest in the world (no subsidies here!) This has seen the number of commercial farmers drastically reduced over the years until, it is estimated, we now have around 30 000 left.

Agricultural co-operatives changed and in almost all cases converted to being companies. Moving away from the farmer-owned model that existed previously, the stronger ones absorbed the smaller ones leaving a handful of role players of national (and international) significance. The proposed merger of two of these changes the agribusiness landscape in the country.

The history of agribusiness is traced in the agribusiness chapter in The Agri Handbook.

Subsequent to 1994, the co-operative model is held up as a tool to establish -- this time -- black small scale farmers  and other businesses. Read about this the chapter on co-operatives.

How is South Africa (SA) affected by the crisis in the Ukraine?

Vunani Securities compiled a report looking at South African Revenue Service (SARS) data. The following are points taken from there.

• Wheat is the first and obvious area of concern. Last year, 46.3% of SA's wheat came from the Ukraine and Russia. Sourcing more expensive wheat elsewhere will cause higher food prices. Rising food prices is one the chief drivers of inflation in this country.
• About 11% of SA's total fertiliser imports come from Russia, along with some 10% of its imports of copper wire and 7.4% of its cigars and cigarettes.
• Russia imports tanned/dressed fur skins and artificial fur products, jams, fruit jellies and marmalade from SA. Manganese ore, wine and citrus fruit are other major exports to both Russia and Ukraine.

Source: Business Day

EU trade barriers

The Bi-weekly Update - Agriculture and Bi-weekly update - fisheries are published by the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA). The most recent, announced that the European Commission (EC) had published its ‘Trade and investment barriers report 2014’, which looks at the key barriers faced in trade and investment relations with “the EU’s strategic partners, i.e. China, India, Japan, Mercosur, Russia and the United States”.

Readers in South Africa will notice their BRICS partners here: Brazil (part of Mercosur), Russia, India and China. Where is South Africa? Where is Africa, for that matter?

The continent is covered in the report under the EU Market Access Strategy. Find the editorial comment about this in the CTA article 'EC trade barriers report provides insights into agro-food sector priorities in future trade relations' which can be accessed here.

The story of your life in 18 minutes

How would you tell the story of your life in 18 minutes? Think about it for a moment. The spotlight is shining on you and an audience of several hundred are watching. Where would you begin?

Imagine telling the story of the world in 18 minutes. It's what David Christian does. It is "Big history" i.e. it takes in what existed before the so-called big-bang ... right up to the present day.

Talk of editing! To compress all the achievements and happenings of what we know (and don't know) into 18 minutes is a major achievement. Two developments that he touches on, especially, are food for thought:

• The emergence of farming, which changed everything! As we have noted before, agriculture releases everyone else to get on with other matters because a small minority of people (the farmers) are there to ensure that there is food for everyone.
• The transference of knowledge means that what we learn does not die with us, and our offspring can pick up from where we left off and take our achievements to new heights (and new lows, some would say, but that is a subject for another evening!)

Find and enjoy the talk here.

Key agri opportunities in South Africa

Earlier this week, the Department of Trade and Industry minister, Dr Davies, introduced the Industrial Policy Action Plans (IPAPs) for the next two years. These are areas within the economy which hold greater promise to earn foreign exchange and grow jobs, and which therefore enjoy government incentives and support.

Key opportunities of interest to this website are listed here, and linked to the relevant chapter in The Agri Handbook:

• Fruit juices, indigenous teas (Red bush/rooibos and Honeybush), fruits and wine
• Fruit and vegetable canning
• Cassava (to increase production so as to replace imports)
• Biofuels
• Small-scale milling
• Broilers (chicken meat)
• The intervention in the food-processing sector is a skills programme
• Aquaculture
• Forestry (sawmilling, furniture manufacturing)

Although not agricultural of nature, of interest is the focus on renewable energy. Between 2011 and 2013 more than R100 Billion was committed towards developing renewable energy projects in this country. This is mainly solar and wind energy.

The oil & gas sector is also looked at (including shale gas).

Nigeria is now the biggest economy in Africa

Nigeria has ascended to being the largest economy in Africa. This follows the rebasing of its gross domestic product (GDP) to $509.9-billion. South Africa’s nominal GDP stood at around $322-billion.

We chuckled at South Africa's Trade and Industry (DTI) minister who welcomed Nigeria's new position, saying that "this is not the Absa Currie Cup" (our domestic rugby football competition). Dr Davies was introducing the new Industrial Policy Action Plans (IPAPs), areas of the economy identified as holding growth potential and which will enjoy greater government support. This will be dealt with in a subsequent blog.

Nigeria has a population more than three times the size of South Africa. Read about the Nigerian economy on the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission website.

Rain can spoil your weekend ...

... or rain can save your life / depending on who you are / and what your thirst is like (Mark Heard)

We have written several articles on water, crucial to life on earth. Indeed, in The Agri Handbook, the general Water chapter is found under the National Issues section, highlighting its role in our day-to-day existence.

As with all things in our dual reality, the resource which sustains life can also, in unfortunate circumstances, do the opposite.

We were approached to help publicise the work of a charity that saves lives on the country's waters. The National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) is run by 940 highly skilled, unpaid volunteers who are on standby day and night throughout the year.

In the latest fund raising event in support of their work, you, the visitor, have the opportunity to win two Mitsubishi vehicles, a cash prize of R250,000 (around US$25,000), or a trip for two on the Queen Mary 2. Find more information here and the June entry form here.

UK expert says: "You cannot consider fracking in a water-stressed area"

Sir David King has been in South Africa this week. King is UK special representative on climate change.

He believes South Africa can benefit from strongly falling solar photovoltaic (PV) prices. The country has land which is underutilised -- and much sunshine. He is also in favour of nuclear energy.

Interestingly, he is less enthusiastic about hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking". (For overseas visitors, controversial plans are in the pipeline to do fracking in South Africa's dry Karoo area). Find the report here.

Meanwhile, officials from Ohio, Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas in the US have met to discuss fracking-induced earthquakes, and to see what can be done.

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.

Keeping ahead

Grape and olive farmers will be interested to hear that French company PELLENC is setting up shop here from the 1st of May. The company designs and sells machines to work in vineyards and orchards (grape harvesters, trimmers, pruning shears and so on). Interested parties can view what is on offer here.

Grapes, olives and wine are amongst the nearly 180 chapters of The Agri Handbook.

In the space of being squeezed between input and labour costs and what they get for their produce, farmers are interested in new technology, machinery ... anything which gets the job done, which saves costs and makes farming more profitable. Farmers keep their eyes on the market floor, agricultural magazines and events like Nampo. The latter will be taking place from 13 - 16 May this year. See you there!

Our farmers and the World Meteorological Organisation

Do you know that 13 of the 14 warmest years on record have happened since our calendars went from 1999 to the year 2000?

Our country has become increasingly familiar with extreme weather. In places like the Free State and North West we saw drought that devastated the prospects of farmers and reduced them to tears -- and then came floods which caused millions of rands damage! The eastern parts of the country only had floods.

The United Nations' World Meteorological Organisation released its annual report today which confirms a disquietening trend of droughts and floods and extreme weather around the world.

Climate change and global warming is one of the chapters in The Agri Handbook.

What's that you say?

How does one place a value on communication? It is probably the most important aspect of life. To teach and learn. To tell another how you feel. With these we make a living and a life.

A person's worldview and intentions are factors in communication, of course, and we have touched on this elsewhere. Here we wish to say that information and communication technology (ICT) makes literally a world of difference to the agricultural value chain.

• Software programmes available range from financial programmes to management functions: irrigation scheduling, tank control in cellars, packhouse control and so on. Improving efficiencies is vital for profitable operations.
• Most of our knowledge comes from sight, from seeing what something looks like and how something is done. ICT is crucial in building capacity in the workforce. View the latest offering from SA Orchard on picking pome fruit.
• Radio, magazines and other media keep you informed. Cellphones (mobile phones) are not just phones. They switch on pumps and close gates and bring news from markets. Drones enable you to check on the level of water troughs on the other side of the farm.

The ICT and agricultural media chapter in The Agri Handbook sketches the services offered by this medium in agriculture.

Wheat price high

The news this evening is that wheat prices in South Africa are at their highest since 2008, a result of the Ukraine crisis. Role players here have argued for years that the State should do more to encourage the local industry (the import tariff is way below what is allowed under WTO regulations).

Read about the wheat industry in South Africa (and globally) in the wheat chapter of The Agri Handbook.

News on free Afrikaans Agri Handboek download ...

For those of you who may have missed the Landbouweekblad article Gratis handboek oor die landbou, the Afrikaans version of The Agri Handbook is available as a free download here. Fill in the details required and after about two minutes you will receive an email with a link on it. Click on the link and carry on with other work. After about twenty minutes the eBook will be in your Downloads folder.

This is a useful resource to have on your PC or company server, especially because of the search function.

The English download is available for $5 (find the link on the small thumbnail picture on the right of the screen).

A forum for African CEOs

French magazine publisher Groupe Jeune Afrique in partnership with the African Development Bank (AfDB) is organisaing the second Africa CEO Forum from the 17th - 19th of this month.

The trends in agribusiness is one of the areas being looked at as this think-tank works on strategies to encourage growth. Read more here.

Africa and agriculture is the opening chapter in The Agri Handbook, giving overviews of the situation, the potential and role players.

Exchange rates and agriculture

The South African currency, the rand (ZAR) is significantly worth less than it was a year ago. What are the implications for agriculture?

• It is good news for exporters because they are paid in the currencies which are stronger than the local one.
• It is good news for grain producers as grain prices are derived from international prices.
• It is bad news for the meat and dairy industries if their product prices do not increase in line with feed price increases. [Find the several individual chapters in the Livestock section of The Agri Handbook].
• It is bad news when it comes to buying inputs - machinery, fuel, fertiliser and agro-chemicals.

Written with acknowledgement to Robyn Joubert's article "Weaker rand's ups and downs" in the Farmer's Weekly

Wheat and the Ukraine

The news from the commodity trading people is that wheat prices are surging, a result of the crisis in the Ukraine and fears of a disruption there. This region is a major wheat exporter. Combined wheat exports from here will be approximately 26 million tonnes (about 17% of the world trade), according to the latest figures from the US Department of Agriculture.

Read about the wheat industry in South Africa (and globally) in the wheat chapter of The Agri Handbook.

Plagues on houses and vineyards

Like an earlier blog about GM crops causing friction between neighbours, an item of news surfaces today in which a regional issue becomes a microcosm for a much wider clash of ideas. Fingers point and multitudes are gathering around battle standards.

How do we stop leaf-hopping insects from spreading the “flavescence Dorée" bacterial disease? To save the region's vineyards, local authorities in France ordered farmers to use pesticides. An organic farmer objects.

Find the story here.

Crop protection (specifically with the use of agro-chemicals) is covered in The Agri Handbook, as are organic farming, permaculture and biocontrol. 

Event notification: East Coast Intensive Horticulture Symposium 13 March 2014

Intensive horticulture is seen as a crucial step in meeting the planet's demand for food. It has many things going for it, including the protection against temperature fluctuations and strong winds. Take a look at the Hydroponics & undercover growing and the Cut flowers chapters in The Agri Handbook.

Next month on the 13th March, the East Coast Intensive Horticulture Symposium will be hosted by the association representing this technology in Kwazulu-Natal (KZN), East Coast Intensive Horticulture, together with the KZN Flower Growers Association.

Find the agenda here, and the registration form here.

Toys for pigs

Were you bored at school? From your own experience you may recall certain teachers -- the way they dressed, spoke, smiled (or did not smile). You may remember the smell of the classroom, the view through the windows ... worse, the whole experience might just be a blank!

Boredom will result in not performing well in tests and exams, but there can also be negative social interaction as children look elsewhere for something more entertaining, and vandalism, bullying, even drugs can be a consequence.

In the workplace, you will know what happens when colleagues have not bought into the job, the carrots and sticks required to monitor performance.

Like human beings, pigs can also get bored. Scientists have found that toys can stimulate these intelligent animals and make for a happier growing time. Cones and balls (made of pig-friendly material) mounted on the floor and on brackets engage their play instincts and keep them occupied, leading to a significant drop in fighting and tail-biting.

Find the video here, and the article on the WEDA website here.

A chapter on farming with pigs is included in The Agri Handbook.

Farmer loses 65 cattle to lightning

The Afrikaans agricultural magazine, Landbouweekblad, reports on a farmer who lost 65 cattle in a lightning strike.

Watch the cellphone footage, taken by farmer Victor Badenhorst near Lichtenburg, as he walks around surveying the damage to his herd. Landbouweekblad posted the footage on Youtube.com.

Following the tragedy, fellow farmers donated 42 animals to help him get by.


Lightning is covered in the Weather & climate chapter in The Agri Handbook.

South Africa to get fracking

The State President, Mr Jacob Zuma, gave his state of the nation address (SONA) this evening. In the next few days there will be many responses but for now let us mention that the state seems hellbent on fracking in the Western and Eastern Cape.

We have blogged on fracking (hydraulic fracturing) before. See this December 2013 post.

Now, despite being hugely unpopular, the e-toll system was implemented in the business hub of South Africa (Johannesburg and Pretoria) late last year. Government gave the middle finger to business, NGOs, religious groups, consumers, the press, taxpayers, its own labour alliance partner COSATU, most people who drive cars, most people who don't drive cars ...

Perhaps it knows what it's doing? The point is that the state seems impervious to public opinion. If it could implement the e-tolls despite this being massively controversial and unpopular, the odds are that we'll be fracking sometime soon.

Fracking will be a "game changer" alright - let's hope for all the right reasons.


Read a related story from the Northern Hemisphere (France 24) this week.

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.

GM crops don't make for good neighbours?

Have you read the story about a farmer suing his neighbour for causing him to lose his organic farming status? Genetically modified (GM) canola (rapeseed) blew over from Michael Baxter's property onto Steve Marsh's and has divided former friends and the neighbourhood.

Both GM supporters and detractors are raising funds for the court case, reports the BBC. Read the story here.

Find out about the pros and cons of GM, international and South African role players - and more - in the Biotechnology & plant breeding chapter of  The Agri Handbook.

Food wastage footprint

Isn't it a crazy world and economic system where food is wasted while human beings starve in other areas?

The UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has compiled a study Food Wastage Footprint: Impacts on Natural Resources which shows that the waste of some 1.3 billion tonnes of food every year harms the very natural resources we rely on to feed ourselves. The direct economic costs are some $750 billion annually!

Do we have the courage to drop our causes and our concepts to address this scandal?

Food security is one of the chapters in The Agri Handbook, while there is a whole section covering natural resources. The opening chapter is Biodiversity and ecosystems services.

Create jobs for the youth in sub-Saharan Africa: an opportunity

As many as 11-million young Africans are expected to join the labour market every year for the next decade. One can see why creating jobs is a high priority in these countries.

The World Bank released a report this week entitled Youth Employment in sub-Saharan Africa.

Governments are urged to (1) improve the business environment to spark more private investment, and (2) to invest more in young people’s education and other skills to create brighter life prospects for them.

Interestingly enough, as working populations get older in other parts of the world, Africa could find an international demand for her labour and skills if her governments improve the education and job training of their youth.

In The Agri Handbook for South Africa, Youth and Job creation are chapters in the "National Issues" section. Another whole section is devoted to agricultural education and possible careers.

Ready for round six?

The new year has started and by this time you are all back at work, earning your livelihoods from perhaps the noblest profession – the production of food for the country, which enables life to go on.

Agriculture is the economic backbone of the rural areas, bringing stability here. But it does this for cities too (people there don’t have to grow their own food!)

The Agri Handbook provides an orientation to every part of the agro-food value chain. We invite you to take out your copy and look at the index pages again, or view these online here.

We are set to begin work on the 6^th edition and invite you to have a profile in this book. Available as hard copy, CD-ROM and free online, it is an investment in the future of your company and indeed, in your own. Refer to the "Advertise" option on this website.

Global agribusiness Forum to meet in Cape Town

The 2014 forum of the International Food and Agribusiness Management Association (IFAMA) will take place in Cape Town in June. This will be the first time that this global event will happen on the African continent, reports South Africa's Agricultural Business Chamber (Agbiz). The Forum hosts speakers and participants from more than thirty countries.

To read about agribusinesses in South Africa, find the chapter in The Agri Handbook here.

The rand, rain, tractors

The South African Agricultural Machinery Association (SAAMA) represents companies supplying ... well ... agricultural machinery. Find the chapter "Tractors, combines and balers" in The Agri Handbook here.

SAAMA puts out a monthly statement on tractor and combine harvester sales, along with a short commentary.

Late rains [and no rain] in the west of the country has affected the planting of maize there. The South African rand (ZAR) has been weak of late (which will push up prices of machinery). This leads to an early forecast that tractor sales in 2014 will be lower than in 2013. Positive factors remain commodity prices (which are solid) and the "relatively low grain stocks in the country".

Find the report for December 2013 at http://www.saama.co.za/saama/saamstat.htm

Technology and living together

This past weekend I proof read a friend's article which looked at how trade unions have embraced technology (or not). It was fascinating reading as these bodies often see their prime purpose as bargaining over wages.

Technology is a vital factor for social organisations like trade unions within a country, but also for countries themselves, especially since we are all part of the "global village" (farmers in a rural area of the Free State or Mpumalanga are affected by the weather in the USA or Australia!)

Technology is covered in The Agri Handbook in chapters like ICT and agricultural media, and there are references to it in others like Animal improvement & breeders; Tractors, combines & balers; Research & development and Precision farming.