Business
Farmer's Weekly
SA citrus: juice prices, export estimates, and market opportunities
While the citrus industry faces challenges like compliance hurdles in the EU and geopolitical risks in the US, strong pricing trends, global supply gaps, and improving growing conditions suggest that South Africa’s citrus producers are in a favourable position.
3 min |
May 23, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Breakthrough in fight against Sclerotinia diseases in South African crops
The South African Sclerotinia Research Network is driving innovation in combating Sclerotinia diseases through coordinated research, advanced technologies, and collaborative efforts to safeguard crops like sunflower, soya bean and canola.
2 min |
May 23, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
It's all about the groundnuts
Over the years, Eduard Dreyer ventured into different markets to build his business's resilience. Groundnuts, however, became a core part of his farming enterprise, so much so that he built a processing plant that specialises in cleaning and sorting the crop. Nichelle Steyn reports on how Eduard and his son Christian handle the 2 000t harvest.
4 min |
May 23, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
De Rustica among top olive oil producers again
De Rustica, an olive estate in the Klein Karoo, Western Cape, took second place overall at the 2025 EVOOLEUM Awards, demonstrating a consistency of excellence rarely seen in the industry.
1 min |
May 23, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
East London agri show celebrates strong turnout
The East London Agricultural Show, held over four days in May at the Gonubie Farmer’s Hall, drew large crowds and nearly doubled its poultry entries compared with last year, marking a successful 2025 edition of the annual event.
1 min |
May 23, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Employee versus independent contractor
It is often difficult to distinguish between an employee and an independent contractor, so the courts have developed tests to help with this, writes Xander Levendal.
2 min |
May 23, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
City markets lose income due to capacity limits
Municipal fresh produce markets are leaving money on the table by ignoring infrastructure concerns.
2 min |
May 23, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Red meat farmers mark progress at farmers' day
The National Livestock Farmers’ Association of South Africa (NaLFA-SA), a coalition of black farmer associations in the red meat industry, hosted a farmers’ day in Mboya Location in Mbhashe Local Municipality in the Eastern Cape to showcase progress in livestock farming, and call for continued government and industry support to transform communal farming into a commercial force.
1 min |
May 23, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Red-fleshed apple varieties showing more promise
Dutoit Group (Dutoit) was excited about results from its semi-commercial trials with Ifored’s red-fleshed apple varieties, which will be marketed under the Kissabel brand name.
1 min |
May 23, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Addressing childhood malnutrition in sub-Saharan Africa
With childhood malnutrition widespread across Africa, including South Africa, the authors of this article present research on a method for creating nutritious complementary foods using fermentation technology.
4 min |
May 23, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Smartphones, demographics shape Gen Z drinking
Concerns over health and alcohol among Gen Zs in the US may be exaggerated, as the perceived risk of binge drinking on a weekly basis has not budged for nearly two decades, according to a report by Rabobank Research, titled 'The real reasons Generation Z is drinking less alcohol'.
2 min |
May 23, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
A practical guide to sorghum production
Sorghum is an ideal crop for new farmers, as it requires minimal nutrient inputs and is resilient to drought. It also thrives in soils where maize, soya bean, and sunflower can’t. Experiments are ongoing to breed varieties with even better drought and heat tolerance
7 min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Obtain virus-free planting material for sweet potatoes
Sweet potatoes are easy to grow almost all year round, but Bill Kerr warns that you need to guard against viruses taking hold of the crop.
2 min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Growing onions as a market gardener or small-scale producer
When choosing which vegetables to plant, factors like demand, shelf life, and pest resistance should be considered. Shane Brody says onions are a good option in this regard, and explains how to grow them.
3 min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
First steps to take when putting up a chicken house
Choosing the right site and materials to set up a chicken house or coop on your smallholding or in your backyard is essential to ensure the health and safety of your chickens.
4 min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
World shearing record broken in South Africa
New Zealand shearer Aiden Copp and South African shearing contractor Tienie du Plessis recently set a world two-stand shearing record by shearing a total of 970 Merino lambs in nine hours near Steynsburg, Eastern Cape.
2 min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Bonsai: combining horticulture with artistic expression
Bonsai, the traditional Japanese art form of cultivating miniature trees in containers, involves the careful pruning, pinching, and wiring of trees to train them into various shapes
3 min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Changes to Fruit South Africa board of directors
Fruit South Africa (Fruit SA) recently announced key changes to its board of directors.
1 min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
BYD Shark out to prove its credentials
BYD's presence in South Africa has been low-key due to the Chinese carmaker only offering all-electric models. That's about to change with the arrival of the plug-in hybrid Shark bakkie, writes The Citizen's Jaco van der Merwe.
2 min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
SA, Ukraine explore agri trade ties in state visit
President Cyril Ramaphosa welcomed his Ukrainian counterpart, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, to South Africa on 24 April, in a historic official visit at the Union Buildings in Pretoria, the first by a Ukrainian head of state.
1 min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Case IH geared to support sorghum production
André Olwagen, strategic marketing manager and product portfolio manager at Case IH, spoke to Magda du Toit about how the company assists farmers during the planting and harvesting of sorghum.
2 min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
The many uses of cattle rails
The Citizen's Jaco van der Merwe has fond memories of holding onto the cattle rails of his uncle's bakkie for dear life, with Lovely the collie by his side, on the farm roads of Koekenaap. It turns out, though, that these rails keep more people and dogs on bakkies than they do cattle.
3 min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
G20 agri working group: unlocking potential for all
Addressing the skewed nature of agriculture should be a priority for the G20 Agriculture Working Group.
2 min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Million-kilometre Hino truck starts new phase in its life
With regular servicing and maintenance, this trouble-free Hino 15-258 500 Series truck is set to keep going strong for many more kilometres to come.
1 min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
High rainfall-mitigation tech is available, but costly
South Africa's status as an arid country has focused much attention on water-saving technologies, placing farmers in a good position to better manage water resources.
2 min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Standing committee gears up for better oversight
The Standing Committee on Agriculture, Economic Development and Tourism recently engaged directly with leading industry bodies, including AgBiz, Agri Western Cape, Hortgro, South Africa Wine, the National Wool Growers’ Association (NWGA), the Red Meat Producers’ Organisation (RPO), Milk South Africa, the South African Pork Producers’ Organisation and the Citrus Growers’ Association of Southern Africa, to deepen their understanding of the agriculture sector.
2 min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Sorghum: a viable crop for summer rainfall areas
Sorghum, deeply rooted in South Africa’s heritage, is a versatile, highly nutritious, and gluten-free grain. Hardy and drought-tolerant, it thrives in various soil types and fluctuating climate conditions. However, for sorghum to be a viable crop, it must add value to a farming enterprise, fit into a farmer's rotation system, and be profitable. Magda du Toit spoke to industry experts about the best sorghum production practices.
10+ min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Western Cape honey bee population under threat
South Africa’s agricultural output could face significant disruption unless urgent steps are taken to protect the country’s indigenous honey bee populations, the Western Cape Bee Industry Association (WCBA) has warned.
2 min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
Captive big cat industry needs complete reform
The recent conviction of Thabo Masihlelo, a professor at Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University in Gauteng, for animal cruelty (after starving captive lions were found in his possession near Tweeling in the Free State) highlights the urgent need for comprehensive reform in South Africa's captive lion industry.
1 min |
May 16, 2025
Farmer's Weekly
The rise of the big red machine
In German, a steiger is the foreman on a mine; someone who must ensure the safety of workers rising from the depths. In the same way, the new Case IH Steiger is the latest example of how agricultural mechanisation has risen from relatively humble beginnings to powerful innovation.
2 min |