Business
Stockfarm
Ewe Nutrition For Optimal Lamb Production
Sheep producers are often heard complaining about ewes that produce thick and sticky, slow-flowing colostrum, with a subsequent negative effect on lambs. Several studies indicate that this problem can be directly attributed to poor nutrition during late gestation.
5 min |
August 2020
Stockfarm
Conservation Agriculture Can Boost Maize Yields
Maize farmers who aim to practise no-till or conservation agriculture on their farms will benefit from significantly higher yields during dry seasons, since these farming methods allow them to plant crops much closer together.
5 min |
August 2020
Stockfarm
Synchronisation And AI Of Beef Cattle Cows Make Sense
Artificial insemination (AI) offers tremendous benefits to the commercial cattle producer. And these benefits stretch far beyond the genetic progress that can be made. This is according to Peter Milton, a cattle production consultant from Port Elizabeth. The first advantage of AI, he says, is its cost-saving aspect.
5 min |
August 2020
Stockfarm
Guidelines For Effective Silage Face Management
Face management involves the effective management of the open side of a bunker – the face – so as to prevent losses.
3 min |
August 2020
Stockfarm
The versatility of cover crops
The use of cover crops has been gaining momentum in recent years. It is especially farmers adhering to the principles of regenerative agriculture, or conservation agriculture, that are making huge strides in gaining experience in the benefits of various plant species, if they are utilised correctly.
5 min |
August 2020
Stockfarm
Investigating the meat quality of Boran cattle
Boran cattle have been subject to prolonged natural selection under harsh environmental conditions for centuries and are now considered an early maturing medium-frame animal. The Boran breed is known for its low production costs and the ability to produce an excellent carcass that can be marketed off the veld.
3 min |
August 2020
Stockfarm
Champion farmer's support plan for emerging farmers
In 2019 Rego Malao was crowned SA Stud Book and Unistel’s Emerging Stud Farmer of the Year. With his farming enterprise growing by leaps and bounds, he came up with a first-rate plan to assist emerging farmers, who share his passion for beef cattle production, on their road to success.
5 min |
August 2020
Stockfarm
The Importance Of Sustainable Biosecurity And Shearing Practices
Consumers around the globe are placing greater value on products that meet certain requirements, with emphasis on aspects such as traceability as an effective identification system, as well as ecological and economic sustainability.
8 min |
July 2020
Stockfarm
Silage Talk: Physical Evaluation Of Silage
There is a lot to be said about the physical appearance of silage. In this instance I am not talking about aspects pertaining to proper silage management – we all know that substandard management merely tends to exacerbate existing problems or create new problems that could have been avoided.
2 min |
July 2020
Stockfarm
A Bright Future Ahead For The Brahman
For the Brahman breeders of South Africa, the challenge of breeding genetically correct animals is one they do not take lightly. They regard it as their responsibility as the benefits will not only extend to commercial beef producers, but also the entire value chain.
6 min |
July 2020
Stockfarm
Correct Adaptation Of Livestock On Crop Residues In Winter
For many livestock farmers crop residues are an indispensable link in their fodder flow programmes, especially in the eastern sourveld areas of the country, where the grazing value of winter veld is very low.
5 min |
July 2020
Stockfarm
Grazing Systems Versus Feedlots: An Economic Perspective
Just as the foot-and-mouth outbreak finally came to an end, the COVID-19 lockdown came into effect.
6 min |
July 2020
Stockfarm
From Farmer's Wife To Boer Goat Breeder And Mentor
The value of Boer goats as animals that can utilise the same grazing as cattle is often overlooked. Yet on a relatively small farm near Vryburg, this advantageous practice is being applied very effectively. This is according to Desré Ferreira, a farmer’s wife and stud breeder from Vryburg. She started her own stud upon realising that if she continued to try and ‘organise’ her husband’s Bonsmara stud, it might just lead to trouble. Today the Boer goats perfectly complement the cattle farming enterprise.
5 min |
July 2020
Stockfarm
The Influence Of High-density Grazing On Herd Fertility
Farmers are increasingly recognising the advantages of ultra-high-density grazing (UHDG) to improve their veld while also increasing their stocking rate.
5 min |
July 2020
Stockfarm
An Overview Of The Global Wildlife Trade
The global trade in wildlife products is an enormous industry. While information relating to the illicit trade of these products is freely available, figures pertaining to legitimate trade rarely makes the headlines. According to global customs statistics released in 2012, wildlife products worth $187 billion were imported worldwide and the value of wild animals, excluding fish and plant products, amounted to approximately $3 billion.
5 min |
July 2020
Stockfarm
Growth stimulants in perspective
Running a feedlot at maximum profitability is no mean feat. What it comes down to is that you have only around 120 days in which to double the weight of the weaners in your system.
4 min |
July 2020
Stockfarm
Managing dairy cows in winter
The dairy cattle breeds found in South Africa today, originated in Western Europe and the British Isles, where winter conditions are much colder than in South Africa.
6 min |
July 2020
Stockfarm
Breaking New Ground With Sustainable Agriculture PhD
In 2014 Stellenbosch University (SU) initiated a new postgraduate programme in sustainable agriculture. Tawanda Marandure was among the programme’s first intake of MSc students and became its first graduate. He is again leading the way as the first SU student to receive a PhD as part of the programme.
3 min |
June 2020
Stockfarm
Dairy Cows: Overcoming Fodder Flow Shortages In Winter
Kikuyu grazing into which ryegrass is sown in autumn is the most common grazing system in the milk-producing areas of the Southern Cape. Kikuyu is dormant during the winter months (June to September) and ryegrass is therefore sown to bridge the fodder flow gap created by this resting period – Italian and perennial ryegrass cultivars are commonly used.
5 min |
June 2020
Stockfarm
Adopting A More Natural Approach To Farming
Stockfarm visited Avondale Farm in the Queenstown district where Simon Sutton, one of four brothers, farms by mimicking the way wild animals used to roam unrestricted before fences were erected.
4 min |
June 2020
Stockfarm
Anti-Trophy Sentiments Can Hamper Conservation
The looming ban on hunting trophy imports and exports is a hot topic in Britain and America and can pose serious consequences for one of the South African wildlife industry’s strongest pillars. Although trophy hunters from England make up only a small percentage of the hunting industry’s clientele, such a ban could set a precedent that could potentially see other governments folding under the pressure of animal welfare groups.
5 min |
June 2020
Stockfarm
Feed sorghum as an alternative silage crop
The summer silage season is almost at an end and all that remains are a few hectares of feed sorghum that still need to be ensiled.
3 min |
June 2020
Stockfarm
Year-round planning for the winter months
Although the winter months pose several challenges to livestock farmers, they can be overcome quite easily with proper planning throughout the year.
5 min |
June 2020
Stockfarm
Stigmas and poor management fuel the sheep scab fire
Since not all farmers report sheep scab among their sheep, the disease continues to pose a tremendous threat to the industry. Sheep scab can only be effectively controlled if all farmers make an effort to obey the law and report incidences timeously.
5 min |
June 2020
Stockfarm
The role of genetics in profitable animal breeding
The principles of selection, genetics and genomics have been fascinating humanity for many decades. Over the centuries, innovators have been trying to imitate and enhance the course of nature using artificial selection as opposed to natural selection.
6 min |
June 2020
Stockfarm
Responsible Mohair Standard launched in South Africa
Mohair South Africa recently launched the Responsible Mohair Standard (RMS), which is aimed at driving a sustainable and ethical mohair industry. The RMS was developed by the global non-profit, Textile Exchange.
2 min |
June 2020
Stockfarm
Co-ops: The key to a healthy Polish dairy industry
Dairy farmers’ dissatisfaction with the milk price is nothing new and is certainly not limited to South Africa. Waldemar Broś of the National Association of Dairy Cooperatives in Poland believes that, while the economic situation of Polish dairy farmers may have been stable the past few years, he has not yet encountered a milk producer anywhere in the world who is satisfied with the producer price of milk.
5 min |
June 2020
Stockfarm
New Grading System Assures Quality For Consumers
With money becoming scarcer by the day in South Africa, consumers are becoming more and more concerned about price. This is one side of the coin. On the other side, while consumers may have less to spend, they are willing to pay more for quality.
5 min |
May 2020
Stockfarm
Mohair Farmers Going From Strength To Strength
In March this year the Wienand family of Olivewoods Farm near Cookhouse in the Eastern Cape, donated 20 young Angora rams to partners of the Mohair Empowerment Trust.
2 min |
May 2020
Stockfarm
A Product Must Have A Market
Johan van der Schyff was named Toyota Agri SA’s National Young Farmer of the Year at the end of 2019.
4 min |