After closely following and monitoring the FCM pest status for many years it now has unfortunately become a regulated pest in the European Union (including the United Kingdom). A lot of work has been going on behind the scenes to…
Dr Ivan Meyer, Provincial Minister of Agriculture in the Western Cape, has officially announced Dr Mogale Sebopetsa as the new Head of the Western Cape Department of Agriculture (WCDoA). Minister Meyer: “I am looking forward to working with the newly…
Text: Elise-Marie Steenkamp Last week, a diverse group of agricultural stakeholders gathered in Stellenbosch to discuss the future of pesticide regulation in South Africa. The Department of Agriculture (DoA) called for the colloquium, themed “Transforming Agricultural Regulatory Policy within the…
By Kara van der Berg A new phytosanitary facility dedicated to deciduous fruit will help improve access to new markets and maintain current ones for the industry. Hortgro approved and funded the building of a new phytosanitary research laboratory that…
In the industry, there are quite a few young orchards that perform exceptionally well despite difficult climatic conditions. To acknowledge the hard work that goes into producing top quality fruit, Hortgro Science is launching the “Bakgatboord Series” . Over the…
HORTGRO spoke to Wolfe Braude, Agbiz Fruitdesk Manager South African deciduous fruit may have access to new markets in the coming years, thanks to two new trade agreements. In the meantime, however, a new tariff for fruit has been introduced…
The new Minister of Agriculture in the Western Cape, Ivan Meyer, has a clear vision of what he must achieve in his term and he is ready to learn. “You must teach me,” he said to delegates at the opening…
Langkloof Representative: Neil-Pierre Strydom The Langkloof had an above-average harvest this year. For the first time in years, all farmers had enough water in their dams to see the season through. On the Western side of the Kloof, rain decreased…
Over the next couple of months we will introduce you to some of our young farmers in the deciduous fruit industry. This ‘next generation’ is passionate about farming, and ready and willing to take on any challenge that South…
Ricard Myburgh, a 25-year old apple and pear farmer from Vyeboom in the Western Cape, was crowned the Toyota New Harvest of the Year 2017. The young Ricard who has been farming on the family farm, Cortina Farms, for the…
Next Generation Series: When Robin Baldie was six years old his teacher asked him what he wanted to be one day. “Without hesitation, I wrote ‘farmer’,” the tall man with the broad smile remembers fondly. Most people might be mistaken…
By Gerrit Rautenbach It’s early morning in early autumn. The slow wind swirls some reddened leaves on the slate floor of the weather-beaten stoep of the main house on the farm Erfdeel. Didi Smith-de Kock and I are sharing some…