Business
Farmer's Weekly
Cotton And Mohair Sectors To Promote Local Consumption
Role players in the domestic cotton and mohair industries have joined forces to ensure that a greater portion of natural fibres produced in South Africa are also processed and consumed here.
1 min |
November 23, 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Beef Farming As Part Of A Broader Business
Napoleon Holborn of Komga is the 2018 Agricultural Research Council’s Emerging Beef Farmer for the Eastern Cape. Mike Burgess visited him to learn about his beef operation and how he has built it, and his other business interests, on the solid foundation laid by his father.
4 min |
November 23, 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Chicken Thighs With Cauliflower And Leek Mash
There is no doubt in my mind that thighs are the best part of the chicken, and that cauliflower mash and its blessed variants cut your carbohydrate load without leaving you with a sense of sacrifice.
2 min |
November 23, 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Why You Should Take The Leap To Cover Cropping
A cover crop can play a valuable role in ensuring that a cropping operation grows and remains sustainable. Cover crops can be tricky to manage, however. In this first article in a series of three, veteran US farmer and cover crop coach Steve Groff explains why a farmer should not give up when trying to grow a cover crop for the first time. Lloyd Phillips reports.
6 min |
November 23, 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Rewards Elude Farmer Despite Hard Work
Petros Sithole has spent a decade working hard to rebuild a farm near Malelane left destitute by land reform beneficiaries, but now stands to lose it all. After stepping in at government’s request, he has been told to leave as the same beneficiaries have returned to the farm. By Lindi Botha.
5 min |
November 23, 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Make Money From Cattle Hides
Selling hides can add to your overall profit margin, so it pays to protect them.
3 min |
November 23, 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Global Economic Outlook: Growing Gloom Worldwide
Growth in global GDP is expected to slow in both developed and emerging market economies this year and in 2020. The reasons for this include a decline in world trade, due in large part to the trade war between the US and China. In a recent report on the global economic outlook, Rabobank economists provided insight into these and other factors.
4 min |
January 18, 2019
Farmer's Weekly
Tissue-Cultured Bananas: Uniform And High-Yielding
Establishing a healthy orchard starts with choosing the correct plant material. In South Africa’s only laboratory of its type, banana plants are cultivated from tissue culture to produce clones that offer farmers vigorous growth and high yield. Lindi Botha visited Du Roi Laboratory in Limpopo.
5 min |
January 18, 2019
Farmer's Weekly
Dairy And Citrus Combine To Ensure Recipe For Success
Huguenot Farms in the Sundays River Valley is implementing a long-term, mixed farming strategy that will see its ‘beautiful soils’ produce to their full potential. Sabrina Dean visited the farm, where the Marais family has established a profitable combined dairy-citrus operation.
6 min |
January 18, 2019
Farmer's Weekly
Award-Winning Brangus Breeder's Formula For Success
Christopher Sparks can be counted as one of the top cattle stud producers in South Africa after having claimed two prestigious national titles last year. Sabrina Dean visited him at his Mount Olive Brangus Stud in the Free State to find out what it is he is doing right.
5 min |
January 18, 2019
Farmer's Weekly
The Search For The South African Unicorn
The discovery of apparent one-horned animals in Southern African rock art resulted in some 18th and 19th century European explorers believing in the existence of unicorns. By Mike Burgess.
4 min |
January 18, 2019
Farmer's Weekly
Dealing With Powdery Mildew
When it comes to pumpkins and squashes, it’s not a case of if, but when powdery mildew will strike. This fungal disease can be highly destructive, especially late in the season.
2 min |
January 18, 2019
Farmer's Weekly
Riding The Food-To-Go Wave
The report, ‘Business models to ride the foodto-go wave,’ released by Rabobank, explores the growing trend of precooked and readyto-eat meals, and how retailers and foodservice providers can work together to benefit from this movement.
3 min |
August 31, 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Weaker Rand, Low Rainfall To Lead To Higher Food Prices
Despite inflation being at its lowest in years, the weaker rand-dollar exchange rate and the possible development of an El Niño event are likely to push food prices up into 2019.
3 min |
August 31, 2018
Farmer's Weekly
From Food To Feed
A Dutch company that produces animal feed from food waste says this is the only way in which agriculture can remain sustainable. Gerhard Uys spoke to Karel van der Velden from Nijsen/Granico.
6 min |
August 31, 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Managing Gerbils On Your Land: Part 3
Rodenticides should be used as a last resort and with a ‘big hammer’ approach if an outbreak has to be brought under control.
2 min |
August 31, 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Hire A Farmer To Grow Your Food
Herenboeren is taking the Netherlands by storm, with city dwellers and urbanites paying farmers to produce food according to their exact specifications. Gerhard Uys spoke to Boudewijn Tooren, a board member of the co-operative, about this radical approach to farming.
7 min |
Farmer's Weekly 17 August 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Land Reform: Why Repeat The Mistakes Of Other Countries?
At Agri Western Cape’s recent annual general meeting in Rawsonville, Dr Theo de Jager, president of the World Farmers’ Organisation, highlighted examples of land reform projects across the world, and what South Africa could learn from their successes and failures.
5 min |
Farmer's Weekly 17 August 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Low Rainfall May Support Maize Prices Into 2019
South Africa’s stocks of white and yellow maize are at a high, putting pressure on prices. But an anticipated El Niño event could result in lower-than-average rainfall, leading to reduced plantings or crop losses, lower supply and higher local prices.
3 min |
Farmer's Weekly 17 August 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Tenacity Wins The Day For Up-and-coming Veggie Farmer
Energetic new farmer Mbali Nwoko started her vegetable farming operation only two years ago, but her determination to succeed has been rewarded and recognised. Last year she was named one of 20 finalists in the prestigious 702 Sage Small Business Awards. Siyanda Sishuba reports.
5 min |
August 24, 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Vehicle Path Management: Key To Reducing Compaction
Efficient in-field mechanisation is a major contributor to higher yield and lower production costs. Unfortunately, mechanisation also means that machinery wheels regularly compact the soil. According to precision farming specialist Ian Beecher-Jones, traffic-induced soil damage can be limited by implementing controlled traffic farming. Denene Erasmus reports.
3 min |
August 24, 2018
Farmer's Weekly
No-till: Key To Greater Profits
Tillage over-aerates the soil and stimulates soil organisms to rapidly break down organic materials. This is a difficult concept to grasp, as it seems logical that loosening the soil creates a better growing environment and enables rapid root development.
2 min |
August 24, 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Breeding Stately Peafowl
28YEARS AGO Peafowl are not only beautiful, they also make good eating. In this article, Roy Billett explains how to raise your own peafowl, from hatching chicks to feeding your cocks and hens.
3 min |
Farmer's Weekly 1 December 2017
Farmer's Weekly
Imports Threaten SA's Banana Farmers
South Africa’s banana industry has expressed concern that if significant imports are allowed to continue, a large number of jobs could be lost and banana enterprises closed down. Lloyd Phillips reports.
2 min |
Farmer's Weekly 1 December 2017
Farmer's Weekly
SA Forestry Sector On Alert For New Eucalyptus Pests
A call has been issued for foresters and concerned citizens to keep an eye out for specimens of the shell lerp psyllid (Spondyliaspis spp.) and the eucalyptus gall wasp (Ophelimus maskelli), and to urgently notify forestry scientists if any are spotted.
1 min |
Farmer's Weekly 1 December 2017
Farmer's Weekly
Communal Farming: Let's Start With The Basics
In his new column, Shane Brody provides an introduction to communal farming in SA and what must be done to make the sector more profitable.
2 min |
Farmer's Weekly 1 December 2017
Farmer's Weekly
KHOI Meets French: Award-Winning Winemaker's Rise To The Top
Berene Damons, the department of agriculture’s 2017 Female Entrepreneur of the Year in the agro-processing category, started work at the Hamilton Russell Vineyards 17 years ago. Promoted almost immediately to a marketing assistant, she soon developed an interest in winemaking, and went on to produce an award-winning, export-quality Pinot Noir wine, Tesselaarsdal. Jeandré du Preez reports.
4 min |
Farmer's Weekly 1 December 2017
Farmer's Weekly
Are Tomato Tunnels Practical In SA?
In Europe, tomatoes are grown in tunnels during winter. Why, then, is the same practice not followed here in South Africa, particularly in frosty areas?
2 min |
Farmer's Weekly 1 December 2017
Farmer's Weekly
From Our Archives
Calf surgery
3 min |
19 January 2018
Farmer's Weekly
Feast Or Famine
The source of the deadly strain ST6 of listeriosis, which has infected nearly 1 000 people and caused more than 180 deaths in South Africa, has been identified at an Enterprise Foods factory in Polokwane.
1 min |