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…
Hortgro is fast-tracking the process to get a new national qualification for horticultural supervisors and junior managers off the ground. Kyra-Kay Rensburg investigates. The Quality Council for Trades and Occupations (QCTO) qualification for Horticultural Foremen, an NQF4 vocational qualification, was…
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…
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…
Next Generation Series: Some prophets of doom believe farming is on its way out (because farmers are a threatened species, they say). Finding a farming concern going stronger than ever after six generations cast a different light. Gerrit Rautenbach visited…
NEXT GENERATION SERIES Making a success of something in life is all about momentum. Progression. Growth. But to be able to do it well, you need to feed the stream. Gerrit Rautenbach looks at how the custodians of the farm…
The first Strydom settled in Krakeel River in the Langkloof in 1770. He had 10 sons and divided his piece of land into 10 sections – one for each son. Today, there are quite a lot of Strydom’s in Krakeel…