Commercial farmers: brainstorming solutions

The hall fills up for the summit

Last week the media was invited to the TLU SA Economic Sustainability Summit. The issues are serious and the same, no matter which national farmer body represents you. State support for commercial agriculture is minimal. Farmers carry production risk completely on their own, even if the whole value chain is dependent on them for its existence.

The day saw presentations by three TLU personnel/members: Gawie van Rensburg and Prof Koos de la Rey of the Economic Sustainability Committee, and Bennie van Zyl, general manager of the TLU SA. A fourth speaker, Dr Gawie du Toit, is an agronomist in the private sector. These talks listed the financial, logistical, environmental, legislative and other challenges facing farmers. The last speaker used case studies to show that maximum returns do not always equate to maximum profit.

Gawie du Toit addresses the gathering. To the left is Bennie van Zyl; Gawie van Rensburg is on the right.

An hour plus saw contributions from the floor, followed by a summation from the TLU president, Louis Meintjies, along with the drawing up of a plan of action.

Is there a way to finance the farm outside of banks and agricultural businesses (the old co-ops)? What other models exist? How can we spread the risk more fairly and sustainably across the whole value chain? Gerrie Strydom, a business consultant, offered his services to source funds and to help with business plans and red tape.

There is encouragement for farmers themselves to become part of the wider value chain.

Finding alternative revenue streams was suggested. These included agritourism, medicinal plants, game meat, cheese and other value add activities, with an emphasis on product quality.

The value of export markets, Europe in particular, was emphasised. Skills and other assistance could be sought from there, and elsewhere. The TLU SA recently sent van Zyl to Israel to look at technology there.

Bennie van Zyl is a big advantage for the TLU SA, as anyone in commercial agricultural circles will confirm. No one who has experienced his smile and big handshake more than once forgets him. He is passionate about what he believes in, and makes solutions to problems seem simple. On this day - whatever your views are - there is much to agree on.

He champions the idea of having mega farms, not mega farmers. A group of farmers combining resources and buying power holds many advantages over farming on your own. These include:

• Securing finance and markets
• Gaining economies of scale
• Labour/access to mechanisation
• Greater access to expertise
• Safety and a sense of community
• Better bridges with consumers

These collective ventures would be contracts, with entrant and exit clauses, which translates into no-one having to carry dead wood, individuals who are not really contributing to the greater good.

Van Zyl also champions negotiations along the value chain to spread the risk. It is after all in the interests of the entire value chain (and rural communities and beyond) that commercial farmers stay in business.

Volunteers are called for to draw up a plan of action, after which lunch is served.

Relevant pages on Agribook.Digital include “Organised agriculture”, “Indigenous medicinal plants”, “Wildlife ranching”, “Exporting” and the whole "Adding value" section (which includes agritourism and dairy processing).

More readers write: a sample of recent requests

Dear Sir/ madam

I want to know what requirement needed if you need a loan to start a cows farming business. I have land the problem is start up capital of R80 000 and the big problem I am not in employment I'm age of 24.  
Thank you

Hi Fikakahle

If you already have land you should speak to your provincial department of agriculture and the IDC about their Nguni Cattle project. They give you ten cows (or whatever) and after a few years you give ten cows back, but by that time those cows have had calves and given you a chance to start your own herd.

You should also speak to NERPO, an organisation that helps people like you with their cattle operations. See http://nerpo.org.za/.

Most other groups will only help you if you have a mentor i.e. someone who is already a cattle farmer and who can show you the way, or if you have some training/qualification.

After that, I can only refer you to the "Beef cattle farming" and "Finance for new farmers and SMMEs" pages and hope with you that you get some assistance there. See https://agribook.co.za/livestock/beef-cattle/ and https://agribook.co.za/marketing-finance/finance-for-new-farmers-and-smmes/.

Best wishes,

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I am interested in starting a chicken farming business dealing with Specifically Layer Hens and Broiler Chickens so I need to get suppliers of chickens and info of chicken farming kind regards

Hi Lerato

There is a lot of information on the poultry and chicken farming page, see https://agribook.co.za/livestock/poultry/.

Suppliers of chicken are listed under the companies involved heading, see specifically the Some suppliers of chicks and breeding stock subheading at https://agribook.co.za/livestock/poultry/#companies.

There is help for interested new farmers. Find details of associations, people who do training and some very useful sources of information (brochures, articles and books), all on this web page.

Best wishes,

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I'm interested in farming with emphasis on crop farming. Could you please assist me with more information on where I can get assistance on drawing up a professional agri-business plan. people that can also assist with soil profiling and suitability tests for my crops, fertilizer requirements and suitable irrigation methods for my crops.
Thank you in advance.

Hi Nathi

The main source of help will probably be your nearest provincial department of agriculture. They have laboratories, for example, to help with soil tests and advice for crops. They run short courses as well to impart the crucial skills that you will need. The Agricultural Research Council also does a lot of work in assisting people get their enterprises off the ground. There are many other sources of help which we run through on the emerging farmer support page. See https://agribook.co.za/issues-here-and-beyond-our-borders/emerging-farmer-support/.

The Department of Agriculture designed many publications, including one on business plans, which are available on its website. See https://www.daff.gov.za/daffweb3/Portals/0/General%20Publications/Training%20manuals%20Cooperatives%20BOOK%2007.pdf.

The different crops are listed under the agronomy, forestry & industrial crops and horticulture sections on our website. Find these under "Contents" on the landing page of the Agribook website. You will find the notes helpful whether you already know what you wish to grow or not.

Best wishes,

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We have sunflower seeds around bloemfontein and we  would like you to link us with the buyers

Hi Graff

Marketing the crop can be as much work as growing it, unless you have this tied down before growing it. I'm trusting you aren't expecting the name and phone number of an individual who will accept the seeds and pay you today. I can't help you with that, but let's look at options.

• The South African Cereals and Oilseeds Trade Association (SACOTA) will be your first bet. See https://sacota.co.za/. 
• The nearest commercial silo owners are another. You will know the big silos near Bloem and be aware of which companies operate there. These will probably be Senwes or VKB. 
• You also have the option of seed sellers. The companies that sell sunflower seeds are listed at http://sansor.org/sunflower/ 
• You also have the option of selling them to supermarkets or pet shops as bird seed. There are probably health shops in Bloemfontein too who might be interested, particularly if your seeds are organically grown. 
• Finally, you could crush the seeds and sell the oil. There is usually more profit when you process the crop which will be true in your case too. Role players like the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) Agricultural Engineering could help you with equipment like this. The ARC has a presence at Glen, just outside Bloemfontein. There will be other role players there to give you advice.
  

My best wishes,

Jobs Fund assists Sekororo farmers to find markets for their produce

A programme supported by the Jobs Fund’s is benefitting black small-scale farmers in Sekororo, a rural community in Limpopo province that produces food that is sold all over South Africa.

The Sekororo farmers, who are participating in the Lima Smallholder Farmer Support Programme, have seen their farming enterprises being transformed overnight, thanks to the comprehensive assistance they are getting from the programme, which has helped them access markets and generate employment in an area where jobs are scarce.

The National Treasury’s Jobs Fund has partnered with the Lima Rural Development Foundation to support smallholder farmers in 22 sites across Limpopo, Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, and Free State. Sekororo, situated 69 kilometres from Limpopo’s farming town of Tzaneen, is one of the 22 sites benefitting from the Lima programme.

“The Jobs Fund’s objective is to catalyse innovative thinking about how the country can create more jobs and support a more inclusive economy. We have invested grant funding of R60 million to the Lima programme and we are confident that it will enhance job creation and provide tangible benefits to farmers across all 22 sites including Sekororo”, says Najwah Allie-Edries, Deputy Director General for Employment Facilitation.

The Lima Smallholder Farmer Support Programme is designed to deliver integrated support services to beneficiary farmers in the form of loans, agricultural inputs (fertilisers, feeds, seedlings), mechanisation, and technical advice. It also assists farmers to access markets for their produce through off-take contracts negotiated with food retailers and wholesalers. 

The programme aims to create 4, 700 jobs and equip 12, 800 farmers nationally with training in business management, annual crop production, and livestock production.  It has so far created just over 3,800 of these jobs.

One of the Sekororo farmers who is benefitting from the programme is poultry farmer and retired school principal, Khensani Mboweni, who joined the programme in August 2017. She employs seven people, of whom three are permanent, and supplies chickens to a reliable market that includes local residents and tshisa nyamas. The demand is so high she often needs to convince her customers to not take the chickens before they reach maturity. 

“I started poultry farming as a backyard project in 2009, producing between 200 and 250 chickens. As time went on, the community needed more chickens, so I built two extra houses for broilers and egg layers. I am currently producing about 3,100 chickens.  

“When I retired in 2017 after 40 years as a teacher, I joined the Lima programme. I have received two production loans from Lima, which I have paid off. I am now busy repaying my third loan of R64,000”, explains Mboweni, whose husband is an agricultural technician and cattle farmer.

Business is picking up for this former educator, who has since managed to buy a bakkie with the proceeds from the farm. 

A few kilometres from Mboweni’s farm is another female farmer, Lucy Hutamo, who is also a retired teacher. Hutamo practices irrigated crop farming on 7 hectares of land and was first assisted by Lima in April 2017 to access fertilisers and chemicals to spray her crops. 

She employs five permanent workers and supplies baby marrows, green pepper, brinjals, watermelons, and tomatoes to food markets in Cape Town, Pretoria, Johannesburg, and Durban. 

“I went to Lima to ask for assistance because I was not successful at farming due to lack of expertise and funding. They gave me technical advice and extended two loans that helped me buy chemicals and seeds.  Since then, we have developed a relationship with Lima that has led to a huge improvement in our business. We used to produce 100 crates of vegetables, but now we produce between 300 and 400 crates,” says Hutamo.

She employs five people on her farm and sells her produce via agents to fresh produce markets and to the agri-hub set up by Lima in Sekororo.  The agri-hub was implemented to assist farmers that seek to access Lima’s integrated support services.

“In the Sekororo site, we have created about 200 jobs through the production of cabbages and butternuts. The Sekororo agri-hub is crucial to supplying farmers with feeds, fertilisers, seeds, and medication, which we supply in partnership with input suppliers. We have about 800 farmers that are serviced by this agri-hub,” explains Lynette Parsons, Lima’s national programme manager.

So far the Sekororo agri-hub has off-take agreements with retailers such as Spar, Boxer Stores, and Fruit and Veg.  About 80% of fresh produce in South Africa is sold through informal markets, with street traders and hawkers being the main distributors.

Lima is in the process of identifying 10 Sekororo beneficiary farmers, who will be trained to take over ownership of the agri-hub. The plan is to have Lima officials gradually hand over responsibilities of managing the agri-hub to the 10 farmers. This will require that they transfer skills to the farmers. 

“The commercial partners (off-takers and input suppliers) are key to the future of the agri-hub. For instance, input suppliers do not only provide technical support to farmers, they also provide bulk discounts since the agri-hub buys in bulk for the farmers. These financial benefits are crucial for a place that used to battle with input supply as it is in a remote part of the country,” explains Parsons.

Lima is adding a pack house to the Sekororo project, where fresh produce from all farmers participating in the project will be aggregated, packaged, and delivered to customers. 

Crop farmer and former lecturer, Linda Ngatsane, has offered to share a pack house on her 21-hectare farm with other emerging farmers in the area.

“We have a pack house that we use to package our products such as green beans, cucumber, and sweet potatoes. Our aim is to brand and sell our products in shops and export markets,” says Ngatsane, who sells her produce to Johannesburg’s fresh produce market in City Deep and informal traders. 

The partnership between the Jobs Fund and Lima has laid a solid foundation for the future sustainability of the Sekororo smallholder farmers and more farmers in the area could end up joining the project to grow their farm ventures.

Read the "Emerging farmer support", "Finance for new farmers and SMMEs", "Poultry" and other pages on Agribook.Digital.

Exporting: 8 lessons from tiny Holland

One can understand the United States of America being the world’s biggest agricultural exporter, straddling a continent from Pacific to Atlantic Ocean. Its 9,834 million km2 dwarfs the 42 508 km2 of the Netherlands. So how does a country 273 times smaller than the USA come in at position 2 when we look closer at top agricultural exporters?

• The land given to agriculture has to prove itself. Holland is densely populated (1,300 inhabitants per square mile). This means that land for agriculture really has to prove itself!
• It supplements its (perfect) geography with greenhouses. This means controlled growing conditions with enormous savings of water (as much as 90% in some cases) and nearly no chemical pesticides needed.
• The country invests in its agricultural economy and in the future workforce with training. Fully funded scholarships are offered to prospective students. Institutions like Wageningen University are world famous in agricultural circles and students from across the globe come here to study.The university has an international leaning: 40% of students and research staff are not Dutch.
• Relevant research: The University is also 25% funded by the private sector which keeps research outputs relevant.
• Effective extension services: the Agricultural Council Offices - bridges the gap between the university and the farmer.
• The Dutch are innovators of agricultural technology (AgriTech) e.g. robots, drones, automated fruit separators and processors. The Netherlands maintains and exports its agri knowledge.
• Infrastructure facilitates exports: the ports of Amsterdam and Rotterdam, airports like Schiphol and Rotterdam, and its railway and roads system all facilitate the fast movement of goods.
• It is close to its major markets: Holland’s location – centre of Europe – one of the richest areas of the world. Neighbours like Germany, Belgium and France are her top markets.

How would these points translate to South Africa? Already agriculture maintains a healthy trade surplus (if we rule out inputs like machinery, fuel and fertiliser), thanks to sectors like citrus, table grapes, the other fruit sectors, macadamia nuts, wine and wool.How can we do better?

Readers will have their own ideas, but the imperative of investing in the future agri workforce, the country’s extension and infrastructure is an obvious takeaway!

Relevant pages on Agribook.Digital include Exporting, Hydroponics and uncover growing, Agricultural education and training and Digital agriculture.

References:

1. ThingExplainer. 2018, December 10. "How The Netherlands Became The World's Second Largest Agricultural Exporter". Available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPPG98yw7-k 
2. VisualPolitik EN. 2018, June 27. "Why The NETHERLANDS is the World's AGRICULTURE leader?" Available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUmP8Tli-Mc

A reader from Limpopo writes

We receive some ten emails a week from people looking for help on one agricultural issue or another. The past week, there was correspondence from someone checking information for agriculture in the provinces, where to buy barley in Gauteng, a request for chemicals. It was when we received two in succession about pigs that we decided to do an article on one of them.

The second request was from a person in a mining company, looking for pig feed additives, asking for a sales consultant to contact her urgently. (Several requests think we are some sort of retailer and we are asked for quotes on animal feed additives, windmills, chemicals etc. These requests are usually passed on to a past advertiser or person who has offered feedback on content).

The request before that is one we decided to follow up, an “inquiry regarding growing an informal pig-keeping operation into an income-generating farm”. The person writing was appealing for help for her father, one Ephraim Boas Malatjie, a “hard working pensioner who keeps over 60 pigs and piglets in his backyard”.

Mmathabo Malatjie continues:

He would like to become a commercial farmer as he currently survives on very little. He previously failed to commercialise this project due to high initial capital costs and high maintenance and feed expenditure ...

There is vast agricultural gap in the village he lives in … He would like to start a piggery and create employment opportunities for other breadwinners like him who struggle to make daily ends meet in the village. He feels he can recruit youngsters and educate them about the benefits of farming and the possibilities in-terms of starting a career as a pig-farmer.

His vision is to dispatch well-fed healthy pigs for slaughter to well-known butchers in the surroundings towns. To achieve this, he however, needs more information on the registration process, skills development training etc. Furthermore, he seeks funding for a construction of proper quality livestock producing pigpen (Concrete floored pigpens with feeding pens and fresh water dispensers).

Mmathabo attached photographs of the backyard piggery which we have displayed here. 

 I forwarded the email on to the South African Pork Producers Organisation (SAPPO) which runs a, by all accounts, competent business development wing. A look at https://www.sapork.co.za/business-development/ will show options like "Guidelines to consider when planning a piggery", "Training DVDs" and details of its training academy, Baynesfield.

I decided to enquire further and lift the lid of anonymity of one more person writing in for assistance. Where did the pigs come from? Why pigs (why not goats or vegetables or something else)?

Mmathabo responded:

Ephraim had been an educator who farmed part-time. He had grown peppers and chilies, which he sold to a local farmer for a profit.

After his water machinery was stolen he was not generating any income. He then bought two piglets with his savings from a man in the village and we called them Candy and Kendris, We spent hours in the pigsty feeding and splashing them with water. Little did we know he would have over 60 pigs in his backyard in 2019.

Mmathabo continued:

The backyard was fenced and a little pigsty with a concrete dam was built for the piglets to have space ... To my father, pigs (although very expensive to maintain) are very good for farming. They teach you a lot about consistency as well as dedication. They grow fast, need time and they have interesting personality traits. 

He then went on early pension and attempted to have a commercial piggery. From his savings he decided to have a borehole so the pigs have freshwater, he also invested in ensuring that they were well-kept by hiring 3 guys who managed their feeding and environment. This did not work out because he had no information about separating breeders from the weaners as well as males and females. It was not long [before] he suddenly had soo many pigs in his yard which were expensive to feed.

Bakeries and shops give him bread, fruit and vegetables. Village functions and family gatherings donate leftovers to feed the pigs.

The pigs are all well-kept and healthy. [Ephraim] has never had issues related to their health and they spend the day running around their yard and people love coming to watch them.

All the people who write in have a story and live real lives. All the people who don’t write in also have a story and live real lives, of course, but the point is that it is fascinating hearing about some of these.

Are there any other people near Mphakane Village, Dzumeri, Giyani in the Limpopo Province who are able to help? Please contact Ephraim on 073 344 9587.

Our aim is to provide orientation points for newcomers. They might be students, researchers, people who want to farm or those who have been farming for years but want to diversify their operations to include something else. Apart from this, there is not much more that we can do. Agribook.Digital is a modest, small, information company. And there are two requests for windmills and another concerning livestock in Mpumalanga that I should respond to now.

Thoko Didiza welcomed back

The face of Thoko Didiza greeted anyone who opened the 2004/2005 National Agricultural Directory and its Afrikaans brother, the Nasionale Landbougids, our first agricultural publication. At that time Didiza was the Minister of Agriculture and Land Affairs, a position she retained through two terms, from 1999 to 2006.

By all accounts she was a shrewd negotiator. We remember the stir in the crowd at an Agri SA congress when she stated that the 30% target of agricultural land to be in black hands excluded the former homelands. (A target which included these areas would have been easier to reach, and lifting the bar was significant). She also drove a hard bargain with AgriBEE.

Read the (Afrikaans) interview with Didiza from 2003, "Thoko Didiza praat kaalvuis" [Thoko Didiza speaks with gloves off, loose translation].

At the last function with organised agriculture, one attendee described the atmosphere as being similar to a funeral. She was a respected but popular minister.

Her prospects and challenges are well set out in an article by Mzukisi Qobo and Wandile Sihlobo in "Can Thoko Didiza unlock the Pandora’s Box of landreform and agriculture?" Further reading includes the Agbiz response tothe new cabinet, the Farmer's Weekly article "Agri sector welcomes newminister Thoko Didiza" and Landbouweekblad’s "Thoko Didiza weerminister van landbou" [Thoko Didiza again minister of agriculture”.

A look at the role agriculture played in rescuing South Africafrom technical recession in several quarters over the last five years is significant. Remembering that it is lately credited with only around 2.5% of GDP, the sector punches way above its weight! AfricaCheck places the figure of white owned farmland at 64.8 million hectares, or 53% of total land. No-one disputes the need for land reform. The question is more about how we are going to do it.

Expropriation without compensation (EwC)? You have to be careful with that one. It carries the certain implication of collapsing the agricultural economy. Not having title or property rights leaves farmers limitations on accessing finance and inhabitants carrying "a dead asset" (Kuyedzwa, 2019). Agriculture is “a strategic economic sector that the country needs to support for economic growth, inclusion, and to boost its competitiveness in the global markets” (Qobo & Sihlobo, 2019), and land reform needs to be addressed with cool heads.

The new cabinet will see Didiza leading the debate on EwC. They don't come cooler than this.

Veterinary services for the community

Student volunteers donating their free time in exchange for vital experience!

We received an invitation this week to a Sponsorship Dinner being held on the 23 May at Onderstepoort Faculty of Veterinary Sciences in Pretoria. The email was from Vetsco.

A society within the University of Pretoria's Veterinary Faculty, Vetsco is run by a committee of 15 students and made up of around 400 members who are actively involved in outreaches to the surrounding community and its animals.

Free veterinary services are provided under the supervision of qualified veterinarians. The members of Vetsco improve the veterinary skills learnt in class, and the community and its animals are assisted through free essential medical services such as vaccinating, sterilising and deworming.

Vetsco also provides education (with a heavy focus on children and rural farmers) about relevant topics such as animal care, Rabies and production diseases like Heartwater or Anthrax.

Small animal outreaches see some 180 dogs and cats per treated; and around 850-1000 cattle, sheep and goats receive attention every production animals outreach. This totals up as 4000-4500 animals per year on average.

Benefits for the students:

• A chance to practice and improve their practical skills (that they may only learn in class) in a real-life environment- i.e. dispensing medication, drawing up and giving vaccines, rectal exams. This not only makes them more confident and fine-tunes their skills, but also prepares them for the realities of life as a graduate vet.
• Improve post-operation care skills.
• Improve clinical exam skills.
• Improve animal handling skills.
• Improved client-doctor communication skills.
• Improved teamwork skills working as part of a medical unit.
• Students experience the realities of working as a vet in rural South Africa.
• Students get the chance to work alongside graduated veterinarians- gain experience and a mentorship bond.
• Breaking down cultural and language barriers between students and community members as they experience clients in rural South Africa.

Benefits for the community:

• Free veterinary services- from vaccines to equipment.
• Reduced stray animal populations via sterilization campaigns.
• Improved pet or herd health- very important for production farmers whose livelihood depends on the animals they care for.
• Education about zoonotic diseases and their animals’ health.
• Reduction of parasite load due to extensive deworming and tick/flea treatments, important as it is estimated 1 in 3 South African children are affected by intestinal parasites.
• Donated bags of high-quality pet food.

To take a look at their wish-list for an indication of what is used on an annual basis, or to give them support, or even get involved with upcoming outreaches, contact Vetsco at v3tsco [at] gmail.com or by calling  072 558 9539.