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Agbiz/IDC Agribusiness Confidence Index improves marginally in Q1 2019

The survey was conducted between 28 February and 15 March and comprised agribusinesses operating in all agricultural subsectors across South Africa...

By Wandile Sihlobo 18 Mar 2019

Migration and displacement: the human face of climate change
Migration and displacement: the human face of climate change

The World Economic Report on Global Risk by the World Bank lists elements of climate change and climate risk in its top 10 list of risks the world faces today...

By Danette Breitenbach 14 Mar 2019

Time to reframe the discipline of finance to focus on sustainability
Time to reframe the discipline of finance to focus on sustainability

Millions of Africans still suffer from water shortages due to problems of uneven distribution and management of existing supplies...

By Danette Breitenbach 13 Mar 2019

Changing weather patterns a challenge for South African farmers
Changing weather patterns a challenge for South African farmers

Last month I painted a bleak picture of SA's grain and oilseed crop conditions due to the dryness of the central and western parts of the country. So it is only fair that I present an update after good rains in the first two weeks of February. Crop conditions have...

By Wandile Sihlobo 25 Feb 2019

Going to great lengths to tell the truth of the vine
Going to great lengths to tell the truth of the vine

What would take the largest commercial wine farm one day to produce would take De Toren up to 15 years - if they had to. But they don't. Because this small, hands-on wine farm prides itself in favouring quality over quantity...

By Ilse van den Berg 22 Feb 2019

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Nigeria surpasses South Africa as sub-Saharan Africa's leading maize producer

Agbiz head of agribusiness research, Wandile Sihlobo compares South Africa's maize yields to a second biggest producer in sub-Saharan Africa - Nigeria...

By Wandile Sihlobo 7 Feb 2019

AGCO is helping African farmers access the agribusiness market
AGCO is helping African farmers access the agribusiness market

AGCO's senior vice president and general manager for Asia Pacific and Africa elaborates on the company's new Farm in a Box initiative and how it's helping African farmers...

By Robin Fredericks 5 Feb 2019

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Agriculture Minister enjoys rare exposure to fruit industry

In January, Minister Senzeni Zokwana's first-ever visit to the fresh fruit industry made for a historic event on the industry calendar...

By Konanani Liphadzi 31 Jan 2019

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Good performance in SA agricultural exports despite the drought

Wine is one of South Africa's largest agricultural exports, therefore the growth in its exports contributes positively to the country's agricultural trade balance...

By Wandile Sihlobo 31 Jan 2019

If Constantia could be captured in a bottle, this is how it would taste
If Constantia could be captured in a bottle, this is how it would taste

Something big is about to happen in the South African wine industry and it is led by none other than top wine connoisseur and negociant, Wade Bales...

By Ilse van den Berg 28 Jan 2019

#BizTrends2019: 5 trends shaping the fresh produce sector
#BizTrends2019: 5 trends shaping the fresh produce sector

The fresh produce industry's characteristics can easily be defined by those of its products - quick turnaround and short shelve life. It is definitely not an easy game...

By Lindie Stroebel 21 Jan 2019

Challenging year ahead for South African beef cattle farmers
Challenging year ahead for South African beef cattle farmers

One challenge that became apparent by the end of 2018 was environmental related, as grain and oilseed producing areas of the country experienced dryness which led to delays in plantings...

By Wandile Sihlobo 15 Jan 2019

Tania Kleintjes-Moses, Spier Wine Farm’s organic winemaker. © SM Photography.
Q&A w/ Tania Kleintjes-Moses: Chenin Blanc, women in wine and proud legacies

Spier Wine Farm's organic winemaker, Tania Kleintjes-Moses elaborates on why she chose a career in winemaking, why she thinks the industry is still very much a boy's club and how she is channelling her groot oupa, trying to leave behind a proud legacy of her own...

By Juanita Pienaar 9 Jan 2019

#BizTrends 2019: Land reform - the year that was, as we look ahead to 2019
#BizTrends 2019: Land reform - the year that was, as we look ahead to 2019

Throughout 2018, the conversation on land reform became a national talking point, even making it to Google's most popular word of the year...

By Peter Setou 7 Jan 2019

#BizTrends2019: Traceability at item level across entire supply chains
#BizTrends2019: Traceability at item level across entire supply chains

A recent development has been implemented as a value chain solution stretching across five consecutive roles in the cotton and cotton products value chain, aiming to still link up the remaining three to four roles to complete the journey from cotton farmers to consumers of cotton-based garments and fashion...

By Dr Hennie Ras 7 Jan 2019

#BizTrends 2019: Agriculture: The future's uncertain, but our vision doesn't have to be
#BizTrends 2019: Agriculture: The future's uncertain, but our vision doesn't have to be

Stats SA's announcement of 2.2% GDP growth for Q3 of 2018 made SA's exit from the recession official. This time it was thanks to the secondary and tertiary sectors, which grew by 4,5% and 2,6% respectively...

By Konanani Liphadzi 7 Jan 2019

#BizTrends2019: Trends in wine and food tourism
#BizTrends2019: Trends in wine and food tourism

The swinging doors to kitchen culture were first held open by celebrity chefs like Julia Child and Jamie Oliver. For the tourism industry, it was the travel documentary style of Rick Stein and Anthony Bourdain that beamed travel to exotic locations, and Cornwall, into our lounges...

By Marisah Nieuwoudt 7 Jan 2019

Can South Africa's sorghum industry be revived?
Can South Africa's sorghum industry be revived?

South African farmers planted 28,800 hectares of sorghum in the 2017/18 production season - the smallest area on record in a dataset starting from 1936/37. This is a disappointing picture, given that sorghum was once seen as key to the development of the biofuel industry in South Africa...

By Wandile Sihlobo 2 Jan 2019

South Africa's 2018/19 maize harvest estimate lowered
South Africa's 2018/19 maize harvest estimate lowered

There are growing concerns that the current dry weather conditions in most parts of South Africa could lead to a lower maize harvest in the 2018/19 production season...

By Wandile Sihlobo 20 Dec 2018

J'Something on launching his own craft gin - Jin Gin
J'Something on launching his own craft gin - Jin Gin

Celebrated muso and foodie J'Something shares the inspiration behind his new gin brand Jin Gin...

By Lauren Hartzenberg 13 Dec 2018

Meet the Maker: McKruger Spirits
Meet the Maker: McKruger Spirits

Stella Kruger and Colleen McCloy chat to Samantha Snedorf about their fresh new gin under the brand McKruger Spirits ...

By Samantha Snedorf 7 Dec 2018

Agbiz/IDC Agribusiness Confidence Index falls to the lowest level in 9 years
Agbiz/IDC Agribusiness Confidence Index falls to the lowest level in 9 years

Subsequent to a decline from 54 to 48 points in the third quarter of 2018, the Agbiz/IDC Agribusiness Confidence Index weakened further to 42 in the last quarter of the year. This is the lowest point since the fourth quarter of 2009...

By Wandile Sihlobo 5 Dec 2018

A brief history of South Africa's maize production
A brief history of South Africa's maize production

A recently published research paper by agricultural economists Jan Greyling and Philip Pardey in the Agrekon Journal brings home some key points about South Africa's maize production in terms of commercial and smallholder share contribution...

By Wandile Sihlobo 3 Dec 2018

Meet the Maker: Simone Musgrave
Meet the Maker: Simone Musgrave

I was recently offered the opportunity to attend the official launch of the Musgrave Gin Pink Fridays at the Maslow Hotel where I got to sit down and have a drink with the creator herself, Simone Musgrave...

By Samantha Snedorf 30 Nov 2018

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Food security: Africa should be the answer

The focus that agriculture currently enjoys is a golden opportunity for science and skills transfer to position Africa as the solution to the food security conundrum, argues Peter Oberem...

By Peter Oberem 28 Nov 2018

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Market access sustains SA's fresh fruit industry

It's the time of year when we tap into our affinity for relationships, which we hardly view alongside billions of rands or the creation of thousands of much-needed jobs. Well, when it comes to market access, SA's R44bn fresh fruit industry does just that...

By Konanani Liphadzi 27 Nov 2018

Meet the Maker: Andrew Rall of Distillery 031
Meet the Maker: Andrew Rall of Distillery 031

Distillery 031, as the dialing code inspired name would suggest, is a Durban based distillery run by Andrew Rall - the founder and master distiller. Here, Samantha Snedorf finds out more...

By Samantha Snedorf 23 Nov 2018

Kenyans can celebrate food price relief, but they are not out of the woods
Kenyans can celebrate food price relief, but they are not out of the woods

Celebrations were in order when Kenya recovered from the 2017 drought, when food price inflation was at double digits, causing political tension during the general election, however...

By Wandile Sihlobo 23 Nov 2018

#FoodNextAfrica: How to ensure sustainable growth of plant-based foods
#FoodNextAfrica: How to ensure sustainable growth of plant-based foods

With the population expected to exceed 9 billion by 2050, the search has intensified for alternative protein sources to not only feed us all, but to do so sustainably by minimising the environmental impact...

By Lauren Hartzenberg 1 Nov 2018

All in the family - Bosman Family Vineyards
All in the family - Bosman Family Vineyards

It's not easy living in the Karoo and having to bake your own bread because the nearest shop is so far away...

By Eugene Yiga 30 Oct 2018

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