By Elise-Marie Steenkamp The Pro-Hort programme and the future of the deciduous fruit industry In March this year, Hortgro and Provar, launched “Fruit tasting in the orchard” exhibitions in Ceres and Grabouw to give producers a chance to taste and…
By Gerrit Rautenbach In January of this year, one of the biggest nightmares for any fruit farmer became a horrible reality in the Langkloof. Hail. Some farmers were fortunate, some less so and some got wrecked by the falling ice.…
By Engela Duvenage For the past 18 years, researchers at Stellenbosch University (SU) have studied a selection of nematodes found naturally in South African soils. In the process, they have identified quite a few such roundworm species that could be…
By Elise-Marie Steenkamp The deciduous fruit industry is almost totally dependent on a healthy honeybee population and a viable beekeeping industry. It is therefore important that beekeepers and the industry regularly engage and share future challenges and growth projections. Mariette…
Hortgro has submitted a summary of main concerns to the portfolio committee of the department of agriculture, land reform, and rural development regarding the Agricultural Produce Agents Amendment Bill (B33 – 2020). The Agricultural Produce Agents Act 12 of 1992…
Despite Covid-19 and a few tough drought years, the deciduous fruit industry has been blessed with exceptional harvests in every fruit category managed by Hortgro, after “near-perfect growing conditions”. Hortgro expects a record apple and pear harvest this season, despite…
“We are at a historical moment in time to turn the tide against the coronavirus pandemic. The central weapon to achieve this is through mass vaccination that will reduce mortality, protect the health care system from being overwhelmed, achieve adequate…
Load shedding in January came at an extremely inconvenient time for deciduous fruit producers, with harvesting, packing and cold store operations currently reaching a seasonal peak. Hortgro’s executive director, Anton Rabe, says: “Farms and packhouses had to make adjustments such…
All stops are being pulled out, to make logistics of fruit exports run as smoothly as possible, this season. Jacques du Preez, Hortgro’s General Manager: Trade and Markets, said that weekly meetings between Transnet and the various port stakeholders (the…
The deciduous fruit industry is one of the largest export sectors within the agricultural sector. It employs on average 63,145 permanent equivalent farm workers per annum with an estimated 252 579 dependents. The National Minimum Wage Commission recommended to the…
By Eddie Vienings and Dianca Yssel South Africa is a water scarce region of the world, receiving 40% less precipitation than the global annual average. The implications of this have become clearly evident in recent times – with almost all…
Deur Elise-Marie Steenkamp ‘n Pakhuis is nie ‘n hospitaal nie en elke rolspeler in die waardeketting moet alles in hul vermoë doen om probleemvrugte uit die mark te hou. Dit was die beroep van Charl Stander, Hortgro Stone verteenwoordiger en…