Innholdsfortegnelse for Vol 20 - No 1 2023 i AgriProbe

Agriculture is welcoming A BRAND-NEW YEAR Firstly, well wishes to all our agricultural stakeholders for your resilience, commitment and dedication over the years and in doing so, ensuring a sustained agricultural sector against all odds, i.e. climate change patterns, the Russia/Ukraine war, changing national and international political dynamics and our continued energy crisis, to name a few, which undoubtedly directly impact on the sector, yet AGRICULTURE stood firm and came forward with innovative strategies and continues to review its operational processes to mitigate such adversities in the best interest of the sector. The year 2023 will most definitely bring its own challenges to which the Department will respond in line with its provincial mandate to effectively address the agriculture sector needs, strengthen the commodity approach through its partnerships with industry…

Globally, World Food Day (WFD) is celebrated on 16 October to commemorate the day the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FOA) of the United Nations was founded back in 1945. The purpose of WFD is to raise awareness of the need for more efficient, inclusive, resilient and sustainable agri-food systems. According to the FOA, there has been progress made towards building a better world, but too many people have been left behind. People who are unable to benefit from human development, innovation or economic growth. Hence, this year’s theme is “Leave NO ONE Behind.” “The Department continues to put in resources and efforts, and forge strategic partnerships to collectively tackle food insecurity challenges.” World Food Day is one of the flagship events for the Western Cape Department of Agriculture (WCDoA) and…

A total of 11 farms in the Eden District competed in the Slaughter Lamb Competition, held at Roelcor Abattoir in George in November 2022. Of these, seven were smallholder- and four commercial farmers. Lambs are entered in groups of four, and 16 groups were entered, making for a total of 64 lambs in the competition. The average carcass weight was 20.7kg, with an average dressing percentage of 45.5%. Classification was one A0, nine A1s, 52 A2s and one A3, with five having a conformation of 2, 55 with a conformation of 3 and 4 with a conformation of 4. An overall excellent result! The competition was well supported and a great success. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Thanks go to the farmers for their participation and for entering exemplary animals, to Roelcor Abattoir George…

In August 2019 the California State Secretary of Food and Agriculture, Karen Ross, visited the Western Cape. The delegation included agricultural business people from California, officials from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA), Foreign Agricultural Service of the USDA based in Pretoria, and the US Consulate in Cape Town. During the visit the topic of discussion centred on droughts, floods and climate change adaptation. To get a better understanding of local conditions, the delegation visited the Bergriver Dam, Holsloot flood construction rehabilitation site and the invasive alien clearing site in the Stettyn mountains. The next day the delegation attended the 2019 BFAP Baseline Launch and Secretary Ross made a presentation titled “Climate Change Adaptation: Lessons from California”. During the visit Secretary…

It was exciting to be able to host an inperson graduation in December 2022. A total of 177 students graduated with qualifications ranging from National Certificate, Diploma in Agriculture and the Baccalaureus in Agriculture degree. The theme for 2022’s graduation was “Empowered” and Elsenburg is extremely proud of the class of 2022 for the way in which they navigated their studies throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. “Graduation is a supreme milestone in any career. It is the culmination of an academic journey of unblinking commitment, one’s sacrifice and that of your loved ones, persistent pursuit of knowledge and an affirmation of one’s intellectual prowess. Such a crowning moment in your life must be celebrated with pride and joy,” said Dr Mogale Sebopetsa, Head of Department for the Western Cape Department of…

Amidst some depressing news globally with serious spillover effects on our local economy, as well as most industries being in the process of economic recovery, the South African game ranching industry once again proved its resilience during 2022. The year 2022 saw a record-breaking 152 game auctions, improving on the 151 auctions held during 2019! Obviously when enjoying such a high number of auctions the expectations are also high regarding the annual gross turnover and numbers sold. Gross turnover was R500.85 million, which is 41.8% higher than that of the previous year, but still below the R657.8 million of 2019 and well behind the record of R2.327 billion of 2015. However, a new record of 49 497 animals were sold, thereby beating 2019’s previous record of 48 626 by a…

Imagine nail polish on an ostrich, or even a shoe. These were some of the ideas when this project started. It might seem like facetious remarks, but provided an appeal. The nail of an ostrich chick is the cause of a problem that has a major impact on leather quality. Ostrich chicks naturally have extremely sharp nails when they hatch. The chicks flock together, climbing and scuffing over each other, creating scratches over their skins. These scratches stay on their skin for life and devalue the leather once the birds are slaughtered. Farmers in turn struggle to sell these skins and profit margins are minimalised. The WCDoA offered its expertise to solve this challenge. Industry was forced to end the trimming/cutting of ostrich nails by the end of 2022 because…

Anélia Marais1 en Marieta van der Rijst2 1 Direktoraat Plantwetenskappe 2 LNR Biometrie Inleiding Rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) is ’n inheemse fynbosplant en kom natuurlik in die sanderige en ekologies-sensitiewe gebiede rondom Clanwilliam en die Sederberge voor. In die afgelope dekade het die produksie van rooibostee tussen 10 000 tot 18 000 metrieke ton per jaar gewissel, met verkope vergelykbaar met 6 biljoen koppies tee in 2018. Tussen 2013 en 2017 het die aanplantings in die Wes-Kaap van net onder 36 000 ha toegeneem tot net onder 59 000 ha (SA Rooibos Beperk Feiteblad, 2019). Die plant oorleef in die sandgronde met lae voedingstofvlakke deur mikorisas en assosiasies met stikstof-bindende bakterieë te vorm. Rooibosboere begin na meer volhoubare praktyke kyk wat verminderde bewerking en die saai van dekgewasse insluit. Die area onder…

References BFAP. (2014). BFAP Baseline – Agricultural Outlook 2014 – 2023. Pretoria: BFAP. BFAP. (2020). Agriculture and Agro-processing Master Plan – Market-led inclusive agriculture transformation. Pretoria: BFAP. DAFF. (2019). A profile of the South African Pork Market Value Chain. Pretoria: DAFF. DALRRD. (2021). African swine fever outbreak and surveillance update report. Pretoria: DALRRD. Davids, T. (2014). Exploring regional differences pork production costs: perspectives from the agri benchmark initiative. Pretoria: SAPPO. ITC. (2021). Trade Map. Retrieved from ITC: www.trademap.org/Country_SelProduct_TS.aspx?nvpm=1%7c%7c%7c%7c%7c1005%7c%7c%7c4%7c1%7c1%7c1%7c2%7c1%7c2%7c3%7c1%7c1 Moobi, M., & Mbuqe, B. (2019). Pork Market Analysis – South African potential market in Ghana. Elsenburg: WCDoA. Mugido, W. (2017). The South African pork market. Pretoria: USDA Foreign Agricultural Service. Retrieved from USDA Foreign Agricultural Service: apps.fas.usda.gov/newgainapi/api/report/downloadreportbyfilename?filename=The%20South%20African%20pork%20market%20_Pretoria_South%20Africa%20-%20Republic%20of_9-5-2017.pdf Robinson, J. (2017). The Pig Industry in South Africa. Retrieved from South Africa.co.za: southafrica.co.za/pig-industry-south-africa.html…

Hardly a day has passed in 2023 without South Africans having to bear the brunt of Eskom’s load shedding of electricity supply for domestic and industry use. The current state of disruptive energy supply is a major concern to the agricultural sector. Example 1: Nooitgedacht Farmers Trust The impact of load shedding was made apparent during my recent visit to Nooitgedacht Farmers Trust, a commercial egg production enterprise in Atlantis that provides employment to 11 people. The enterprise produces 50 000 eggs daily that are sold to TopLay Egg for further distribution into the retail market. “Load shedding has created critical problems at every step of the agricultural production chain.” Unreliable electricity supply is disrupting the activation and deactivation schedules for lights, feed hoppers and water feeders. In addition, diesel…

Kwihlabathi liphela, Umhla wokuQatshelwa koKutya liLizwe-jikelele (WFD) ubhiyozelwa ngomhla we 16 ku Okthobha ngelokuqaphela umhla wokusekwa kom’Butho ongoKutya neZolimo (FOA) kwiZizwe Ezimanyeneyo ngomnyaka ka 1945. Injongo yale WFD kukufundisa abantu ngokubaluleka nokufuneka kweendlela ezongezelekileyo zokuvelisa ukutya ngexesha elifanelekileyo, kuqukwa wonke ubani, ukumelana neemeko ezinzima kunye nozinzo kuveliso lokutya. Ngokwalo m’butho i-FOA iyabonakala inkqubela esele yenziwe ngokumalunga nokwenziwa ngcono kwelizwe-jikelele, kodwa, baninzi abantu abasale ngasemva, abangakwaziyo ukuxhamla kuphuhliso loluntu, ukwenza izinto ngeendlela ezintsha nezinobungcono nakuhlumo lwezoqoqosho. Yilento, umxholo walo nyaka usithi “MAKUNGASALI NAMNYE.” Umhla Wokuqatshelwa koKutya liLizwe-jikelele ngomnye wemisitho engoovulindlela kwiSebe leZolimo eNtshona Koloni (WCDoA) yaye alithethi-nje ngomlomo, kodwa libonakalisa ngemisebenzi. Ekubeni kufuneka KUNGASALI NAMNYE, eli Sebe liqhubela phambili ngokuveza imithombo yoncedo, imizamo nangokwenza amacebo entsebenziwano ngelokuqubisana nemingeni engokushokoxeka kokutya okunempilo sihlangene, ingakumbi kwiindawo apho kudingeka khona, nekusekuhlaleni nakumakhaya. Ngaphambi kwalo…

“Once the renovations are completed, the Western Cape Provincial Veterinary Laboratory will provide an enhanced service to our clients,” said Western Cape Minister of Agriculture Dr Ivan Meyer during the recent handover of the building site to the contractor. Minister Meyer said: “The Western Cape Provincial Veterinary Laboratory (PVL) provides a veterinary diagnostic and veterinary public health testing service. Our clients are located in all provinces. Nearly 60% of the samples received for testing originate from outside the Western Cape Province. Testing activities focus on disease diagnosis, surveillance and monitoring.” Minister Meyer continued: “Our main scope is testing for controlled and notifiable animal diseases as listed in the Animal Diseases Act. The national requirement for all laboratories testing for controlled and notifiable animal diseases is that the laboratory is ISO…

The Western Cape Department of Agriculture (WCDoA) recently welcomed a new Chief Director for the programme Rural Development. Jacqui Pandaram is a bright and bubbly soul who holds many qualifications of which a master’s degree in Transport Economics ranks the highest. Jacqui started her career as a volunteer for the Emergency Medical Services and was the first woman to be permanently employed in the service. This set her on a ground-breaking course for many years to come. After her eight years of service, she joined the City of Cape Town and worked as a Transport Economist for about two years. One of her highlights was being involved in the economic evaluation for the extension of Broadway Boulevard from Strand to Gordon’s Bay. This road was later constructed and is now…

Marta Klein made the Karoo proud by receiving the first Ministerial Award for Perseverance from the Western Cape MEC for Agriculture, Dr Ivan Meyer. She received the award in November 2022 at the Western Cape Provincial Agri Awards, hosted at the Grand West Casino and Entertainment World. Not only did she receive this prestigious award on the night, but also came up as the provincial winner in the category: Agri-processing. A true victory for the Central Karoo! Marta was born in the Karoo and grew up in farming communities in the district. In 2009 she was appointed as the forewoman in the butchery on the farm Baakensrug near Nelspoort. Here she is responsible for the general management of the butchery, which includes processing and packaging of red meat and game…

The second of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals of Western Cape agriculture is to “end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture”. An inseparable part of food security is food safety. Veterinary Public Health (VPH), a sub-programme of Veterinary Services, is acutely involved in assuring the safety of the meat and meat products that are produced in the Western Cape. Food security can come in all shapes and sizes, as officials of VPH recently discovered when approving and registering a new abattoir for the slaughter of quail. Although the quail is a small bird, with a slaughter weight of approximately 200g, all the same structural and procedural requirements for an abattoir to slaughter quail need to be met. VPH officials played an important role in assisting…

Healthy rivers are the lifeblood of a catchment, with agriculture, industry and communities dependent on sufficient quantities of clean water in order to meet their needs and develop sustainably. Many rivers within the Berg and Breede River catchments, however, are severely degraded due to invasive alien plants, water pollution, habitat clearing for development, altering of stream flow, and many other impacts. In order to protect water sources and ensure future supply, a partnership of different governmental and non-governmental organisations has been implementing rehabilitation programmes across these two catchments. To support these programmes and raise awareness of the need to protect our rivers the Western Cape Department of Agriculture’s LandCare sub-programme organised a series of bus tours for farmers, other landowners and relevant organisations. The bus tours were an important means…

Bronne Lötter, D. 2016. ’n Status quo-oorsig oor klimaatsverandering en die landbousektor in die Wes-Kaap: Verslag vir die rooibos-sektor, 2016. Smart-Agri, Wes-Kaapse Departement van Landbou. Smith J.F.N., Botha A., & Hardie A,G. 2018. Role of soil quality in declining rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) tea yields in the Clanwilliam area, South Africa. Soil Research 56:252-263. https://doi.org/10.1071/SR17029 SA Rooibos Beperk Feiteblad 2019. https://sarooibos.co.za/wp/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/20190222-SARC-2019-Fact-Sheet.pdf. Toegang verkry 28 Januarie 2022. Muhofhe, M.I., & Dakora, F.D. 1999. Symbiotic response of the African tea legume Aspalathus linearis (Rooibos Tea) to nutrient supply under glasshouse conditions. Symbiosis 27: 279-292. For more information, contact Anélia Marais: anelia.marais@westerncape.gov.za…

On 21 October 2022, a special recognition and award of Knight in the Ordre du Mérite agricole (Order of Agricultural Merit) was bestowed on Darryl Jacobs, the Deputy Director General for Agricultural Development and Support Services. To understand the man that is Monsieur Darryl Wayne Jacobs and his stride to excellence in public service, one must trace his footsteps and truly understand his journey and the values he holds dear. A good upbringing From humble beginnings, Darryl grew up on the Cape Flats in Athlone, Cape Town. From a very early age, Darryl recognised the importance of service to community and took a keen interest in topics of social relevance. An inquisitive mind Brought up in a family filled with educators, Darryl knew and appreciated the power of education and…

The Western Cape Department of Agriculture (WCDoA) wanted to open up a whole new world to the inquisitive young mind when it comes to agricultural career opportunities, and this was indeed achieved through the very popular career booklet Living Agriculture: 50 Career Opportunities that was first published in 2019. However, the world as we know it is changing at a phenomenal rate, and the agricultural landscape is no different, making it important to keep up as technology changes so that we are not left behind. We have entered the 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR) and what this means is a whole new way of work. Where the physical, digital and biological worlds come together, technologies are inter-connected. This brings new and exciting career opportunities for the youth to venture into. The…

The 59th Agricultural Economics Association of South Africa (AEASA) conference, themed “How recent value chain disruptions shaped agrifood systems in sub-Saharan Africa”, took place in October 2022 in Swakopmund, Namibia. It was the first in-person conference of the Association since the 2019 Conference in Bloemfontein. Agricultural economists gathered in Namibia to reconnect, discuss and reflect on the resilience of the agricultural sector amid shocks that disrupted value chains in recent years, such as COVID-19, climate change and the Russia-Ukraine conflict. These have been on-going topics even during lockdown periods, but in-person interactions allowed for in-depth deliberations and painted a more global narrative on how these shocks have affected regional economies. One of the highlights of the conference was the Simon Brand Memorial lecture by Prof. Tom Reardon of Michigan State…

In the aftermath of COVID-19, it was time to meet the experts to get updated on new research and technologies. The Incubation and Fertility Research Group Meeting (IFRG) was held in the beautiful city of Leiden, The Netherlands, during October 2022. “The Western Cape Department of Agriculture plays a vital role in research to ultimately improve productivity and ensure the viability of the ostrich industry.” More than 70 delegates attended the meeting and the group consisted of people from the industry, universities and research centres that have an interest in incubation and fertility in avian species and especially poultry. The 28 speakers included delegates from West and East Europe, North and South Africa, as well as South and Central America. A wide range of topics was covered, including egg storage…

In my fifth undergraduate year of Veterinary Science studies, my class was posed with the task of selecting compulsory community service posts, of which one post would be randomly selected for us. Inundated with so many places, I set myself a goal – choose a post that would provide the best opportunities to grow my veterinary knowledge and skills. And boy, did the Western Cape Provincial Veterinary Laboratory (PVL) and Animal Welfare Society Stellenbosch (AWSS) help me with that! There is hardly a boring day that goes by at the PVL or AWSS, as there are always interesting and thought-provoking cases that come in. During these past few months, my knowledge on diagnostic sampling and testing, as well as disease pathophysiology has grown exponentially. Some of the basic things I…

At the age of 37, Nigel Klaasen was announced as the 2022 Western Cape Prestige Agri Worker as well as the youngest member to serve on the Prestige Forum of the Western Cape MEC for Agriculture, Dr Ivan Meyer. At the Western Cape Provincial Agri Awards in November 2022, hosted at the Grand West Casino and Entertainment World, Nigel Klaasen was also the second winner from the Overberg to receive this award. In 2016 Anton Alexander from the farm Ou Werf in the Vyeboom, Villiersdorp area also received this award. “Nigel Klaasen was announced as the 2022 Western Cape Prestige Agri Worker.” Nigel received several prizes from the Western Cape Department of Agriculture for this award as well as a R20 000 gift voucher from Shoprite, the main sponsor. As…

Greenhouse production is a highly intensive method of farming and should only be entertained after evaluating all aspects thereof, as it demands high capital investment regarding structures, operating systems and plant materials. This industry is labour intensive and demands in-depth knowledge of production and operations management in order to succeed. “The production process demands continuous management for 24 hours per day.” Marketing knowledge, human resource management, sound financial management skills and building maintenance will also be key factors in setting up a viable business. A greenhouse production operation is a living factory in which all the production stages are dealing with a highly perishable product at all stages of the production process. The production process demands continuous management for 24 hours per day, seven days per week for 52 weeks…

The Western Cape Biodiversity Act (WCBA), which was signed into law in November 2022, will come into effect in a phased manner. Certain sections of the WCBA have come into effect on 15 November 2022, which is an important step towards having a modern environmental management framework that is in step with current realities in the Western Cape, South Africa and globally. “The Western Cape Biodiversity Act allows us to modernise our thinking on bio-diversity, driven through partnerships with key sectors and communities to promote the conservation of our biodiversity while also allowing for development, economic growth and job creation,” Anton Bredell, Western Cape Minister of Local Government, Environmental Affairs and Development Planning, said. Proactive approaches are being driven to enable the identification, prioritisation and conservation of key species, habitats…

Part 1: Global and export markets for South African pork meat Vanessa Barends-Jones1 1 Macro and Resource Economics, WCDoA The agricultural sector is not only under pressure due to the increasing impacts of climate change but is facing additional challenges in meeting the need to produce nutritious and affordable food for a growing population (Robinson, 2017). Despite these global challenges, the “developed countries” contribute to a third of food waste (Robinson, 2017). Furthermore, protein shortages are experienced in many countries that are struggling to provide a full range of essential amino acids needed in a human’s diet. The global meat industry is adapting to address this protein shortage and is producing a range of proteins to fill the major needs in poor-resourced communities (Robinson, 2017). Higher income levels and rapid…