Photo by Federico Respini on Unsplash
Some notables from the past week …
NATIONAL
- Parts of the Northern Cape received their first good rains since December 2012 (that’s eight years!) Read “Eerste goeie reën sedert Desember 2012” from the Landbouweekblad.
- The Blueberry sector continues to impress. Read “South Africa’s blueberry production soars, strong future growth predicted“.
- All sectors in agriculture are allowed to operate under the current Level 4 lockdown. Two articles in connection with this are the Fresh Plaza one as well as “South Africa: Wine Industry at a Crossroads Due to Export and Domestic Sales Restrictions“, by the USDA which looks at fallout from the disruption of the last month.
- Two organisations providing input to government are Business for South Africa COVID-19 and the Return2Work Initiative. The latter wants “to provide tools and guidelines to enable sectors to expedite a safe, effective and structured return2work plan”. The National Employers’ Association of SA (NEASA) has also developed a tool kit for employers who find “ridiculously cumbersome and difficult to follow” the regulations which need to be complied with before being allowed to operate under level 4.
- The latest Fresh Produce Exporters’ Forum newsletter includes further tax measures to combat Covid-19.
- In regards to the Covid-19 intervention for small-scale farmers, the Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development, Ms Thoko Didiza, announced that the various districts commenced with the evaluation process of the 42 444 applications with the intention to complete all processes by 8 May 2020, after which all successful applicants/farmers will receive their vouchers to collect inputs from various retailers. Find the DALRRD statement at www.dalrrd.gov.za.
INTERNATIONAL
- Fresh Plaza reported on the Global Strawberry market.
- In recognition of the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day, the European Industrial Hemp Association (EIHA) published a manifesto outlining the potential of industrial hemp to contribute to a greener and more sustainable European economy. Read the “Hemp’s Sustainability Highlighted by European Industrial Hemp Association Manifesto“.
- Agbiz chief economist Wandile Sihlobo discusses the international situation and the effect of the pandemic on supply in South African value chains.
- In the UK, as is the case with other First World countries, farmers necessarily are turning to locals to harvest crops. See “British farmers turn to homegrown force to bring in the harvest“.
- It is estimated that billions of dollars worth of food is going to waste in the US as farmers are faced with massive surpluses in production due to disruptions to the supply chain. Read the Farmer’s Weekly article “Relief aid for US farmers to mitigate massive losses“.
Further reference:
- Biosecurity is ALWAYS important, but particularly so times of a pandemic.
- See the “Berries and exotic fruit” page for blueberry and strawberry information.
- “Wine & wine grapes” includes a look at wine exports.
- Find the Agribook pages on industrial hemp and cannabis for information on two crops that have generated much debate and hold much promise.
- Value chains are looked at across all the livestock, agronomy, horticulture and forestry & industrial crops pages.