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Agroprocessing News

Food inflation in September again higher than expected, reports research body

By: Rebecca Campbell 22nd October 2021 The Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP) has reported that food inflation in South Africa last month was higher than expected, at 6.6% year-on-year. Food inflation contributed 1.1 percentage points to the consumer price index headline inflation figure of 5% for the month. On the other... →

Cotton farming provides diversification options for South African canegrowers

By: Creamer Media Reporter 14th October 2021 The SA Canegrowers Association will present the outcomes of a recently concluded cotton diversification pilot project to the Sugarcane Value Chain Masterplan Task Team on diversification. "These findings represent an exciting new avenue for the sugar industry to explore in pursuit of viable... →

Macadamia factory success is testament to what collaboration can achieve

By: Marleny Arnoldi 5th October 2021 Macadamia farming is a sunrise industry, holding much promise for farmers, the economy and consumers alike, particularly as the market is experiencing exponential growth in demand, says Marquis Macadamias director Roelof van Rooyen. Discussing the inner workings of macadamia farming and... →

Marquis Macadamias Africa nut processing

Marquis Macadamias shares insight on the industry and company

Kaap Agri to dispose of TFC shares for R502m

By: Schalk Burger 4th October 2021 JSE-listed fuel and agricultural retail and trade company Kaap Agri will dispose of its share of fuel station property company TFC Properties for R502-million and will use the proceeds to reduce borrowings and provide dry powder for higher return generating acquisition opportunities, the company... →

Headwinds mounting for world economy into final stretch of 2021

By: Bloomberg 4th October 2021 The global economy is entering the final quarter of 2021 with a mounting number of headwinds threatening to slow the recovery from the pandemic recession and prove policy makers’ benign views on inflation wrong. The spreading delta variant continues to disrupt schools and workplaces. US lawmakers... →

Unitrans Africa acquires crop-spraying drone fleet

By: Irma Venter 30th September 2021 Unitrans Africa has acquired a fleet of the world’s largest spraying drones. The seven Chinese-made DJI T30 Agras drones were developed at a cost of more than R400-million. The T30 drones are already in operation in Malawi and Mozambique, with results exceeding expectations in terms of spraying... →

One of the DJI T30 Agras spraying drones

Research body highlights surge in food inflation last month

By: Rebecca Campbell 27th September 2021 Last month saw higher food inflation than expected, the Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP) has reported. South African food inflation came to 6.9% in August (in year-on-year terms), continuing a rising trend that started in February. Last month’s food inflation was 0.2% higher than... →

Research group reports low level of market concentration in SA agriculture

By: Rebecca Campbell 21st September 2021 In a recent brief report, the Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP) pointed out that, according to the available data, the agricultural sector was one of the South African economy’s least concentrated sectors. And while agro-processing was much more concentrated that agriculture itself,... →

Refrigeration system to cut energy costs available

By: Halima Frost 17th September 2021 With South African retailers looking for ways of recovering from the latest lockdown, as well as the looting and vandalism, an opportunity to decrease costs on the system that comprises the bulk of their energy spend, which is refrigeration, has arisen. “All food retailers rely on refrigeration... →

A large solar installation on a clients roof installed by EP Refrigeration, which is grid-tied and decreases the clients reliance on grid power

LIGHT WORK Adding a solar installation to a company's refrigeration unit deceases the cost of running the unit off grid power alone

Global citrus demand increases refrigeration demand

By: Halima Frost 17th September 2021 A global increase in demand for South African-grown citrus, as well as more export regulations, has resulted in a substantial increase in demand for refrigeration capacity, says local refrigeration manufacturer EP Refrigeration business development head Dawie Kriel. “We not only need to add... →

A roof top refrigeration system installed by EP Refrigeration at a produce packing house

FRUITFUL SERVICES An increased need for refrigerated storage and transport capacity in the citrus sector is being addressed by EP Refrigeration

Opinion: Could South Africa’s logistics crisis derail the citrus sector’s stellar growth trajectory?

15th September 2021 In this opinion article, Nedbank head of agriculture John Hudson writes about how logistics constraints are hampering the growth of South Africa's citrus sector. →

Ethiopian conflict hampering desert locust control, UN says

By: Bloomberg 9th September 2021 Desert locusts are breeding in Ethiopia’s northern regions unhindered due to ongoing conflict, threatening food production in other parts of the vast nation and in neighboring Eritrea, according the Food and Agriculture Organization. Bands are forming in Amhara, Afar and Tigray regions, the... →

Doubling the sugar tax will result in thousands more rural job losses, report states

By: Simone Liedtke 1st September 2021 A report commissioned by the National Economic Development and Labour Council shows that, in the first year of the sugar tax’s implementation, there were 16 621 job losses across the industry, of which 9 000 job losses were in the cane growing sector alone. The South African (SA) Canegrowers... →

South African minority investors to form activist group to take on Tongaat

By: Reuters 31st August 2021 A group of South African minority shareholders is coming together to press for change at debt-laden sugar producer Tongaat Hulett, its leader told Reuters, building on earlier efforts at Ascendis Health. The move signals the further rise of minority shareholder activism in South Africa, after... →

Agricultural employment probably stable, not increasing, despite StatsSA report

By: Rebecca Campbell 27th August 2021 The Bureau for Food and Agricultural Policy (BFAP) has cautioned that the apparent increase in the number of agricultural jobs during the second quarter of this year (2Q21) in comparison to the first quarter (1Q21) might be illusory. According to the figures released by Statistics South Africa... →

Western Cape High Court reserves judgment in Vinpro court case

By: Simone Liedtke 26th August 2021 The Western Cape High Court has reserved judgement in the court case launched by agricultural association Vinpro over the approach towards liquor ban restrictions within the Disaster Management Act followed by the South African government. Following arguments from the legal representatives of... →

Association welcomes renewal of poultry anti-dumping duties

By: Simone Liedtke 26th August 2021 The South African Poultry Association (Sapa) has welcomed the renewal of anti-dumping duties on imports of bone-in chicken from Germany, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom (UK). The determination was issued by the independent International Trade Administration Commission of South Africa... →

South Africa crafts strategy for R28bn cannabis industry

By: Bloomberg 25th August 2021 South Africa’s government unveiled a master plan aimed at harnessing a R28-billion cannabis industry that could potentially create as many of 25 000 jobs and help attract foreign investment. The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development led a two-year process to craft a... →

Agri SA concerned about skilled workforce decline despite employment gains in Q2

By: Marleny Arnoldi 25th August 2021 The agricultural sector was one of few that observed employment gains over the second quarter of this year, adding 69 000 people to its combined workforce, but industry body Agri SA remains concerned about a decline in the skilled workforce in the sector. The employment gains were recorded across... →

Land Bank makes another loss, debt plan not yet finalised

By: Reuters 24th August 2021 South Africa's Land Bank made another loss in the year to the end of March and is yet to finalise a debt restructuring plan, the bank said on Tuesday. The state-owned agricultural bank, which defaulted on its debt in April 2020 and missed a restructuring deadline in March 2021, is one of a... →

Western Cape rooibos industry receives a certificate for PDO in Europe

By: Yvonne Silaule 23rd August 2021 The European Union (EU) on August 23 handed over a certificate to the Western Cape Rooibos industry recognising its registration for Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) in the EU. Rooibos is now the first African product to receive PDO status from the EU. →

Minister, panel members agree that Eastern Cape holds great agriculture potential

By: Marleny Arnoldi 20th August 2021 Although the Eastern Cape is a major source of primary agriculture and exports in the country, it is far from living up to its true productive and job-creation potential, Nascence Advisory and Research MD Xhanti Payi said on August 20. The consultancy hosted an Eastern Cape Agriculture Indaba,... →

Eastern Cape maize farm

Aid supplied for food shortage

20th August 2021 After the recent devastation in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng, engineering solutions provider BMG’s agricultural specialists are working even more closely with the agricultural community to help curtail the shortage of fresh produce in South Africa. “BMG’s agricultural team is well positioned to help... →

FULLY FUNCTIONAL BMG’s agricultural specialists are working even more closely with the agricultural community to help curtail the shortage of fresh produce in South Africa

Sugarcane industry’s R84m loss from riots threatens thousands of rural jobs

By: Schalk Burger 17th August 2021 Industry body the South African Canegrowers Association (SA Canegrowers) is concerned about the impact of the recent unrest that swept through parts of KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng, on the sugar industry, with mills in KwaZulu-Natal having rejected 135 222 t of damaged cane valued at more than... →

Data is the key to the power of IoT, says industry council

By: Schalk Burger 17th August 2021 The Internet of Things (IoT) has been described as a disruptive technology, which has led to high expectations, but these expectations are realistic, owing to the technology's ability to unlock significant insights from seemingly insignificant data and to use these insights to save money and... →

Unique regional status to South Africa's rooibos tea can turn fortunes for crop

By: Reuters 12th August 2021 Come December, when farmers near Cape Town harvest rooibos leaves, they will become the first generation to grow and sell a tea with a unique regional status, a designation awarded to other such products as French champagne or Irish whiskey. The rooibos tea, whose name means "red bush" in... →

Microsoft, IFC pilot small-scale farmer digital tools initiative

By: Marleny Arnoldi 3rd August 2021 Microsoft, through its 4Afrika initiative, has partnered with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to make digital tools and training resources more accessible to the small-scale agricultural sector. The partnership will leverage 4Afrika’s unique digital platforms and the IFC’s... →

Biden revives Trump's Africa business initiative; focus on energy, health

By: Reuters 28th July 2021 The Biden administration on Tuesday announced a new push to expand business ties between US companies and Africa, with a focus on clean energy, health, agribusiness and transportation infrastructure on the continent. US industry executives welcomed the interest, but said dollar flows will lag... →

AfDB finances cross-country power initiative, youth development in Ethiopia

By: Marleny Arnoldi 23rd July 2021 The African Development Bank (AfDB) has signed two grant agreements for new projects with the Ethiopian government, which aims to boost youth employment and electricity trade between Ethiopia and Djibouti. The grants are grouped under the bank’s concessional lending window and will comprise... →

Project management firm upgrades sugar factory

23rd July 2021 Consulting engineering and project management solutions company Bosch Projects was appointed by wattle bark miller and sugar producer UCL Company to undertake three major projects for the recent expansion at its sugar factory in Dalton, KwaZulu-Natal. Bosch Projects is a member of the... →

Photo of long tube evaporator installed at sugar factory

LONG TUBE EVAPORATOR Bosch Projects team needed to be innovative and creative in its approach to detailed engineering solutions and the application of expertise

Association confirms unrest had little impact on citrus exports

By: Marleny Arnoldi 19th July 2021 Citrus growers in Mpumalanga and Limpopo have been diverting their fruit to other ports across the country in the wake of delays and disruption at the Durban port, as well as on routes in Gauteng, but the situation is normalising. While the citrus value chain has been impacted to some extent,... →

SIDS fast-tracks infrastructure- boosting projects

16th July 2021 As part of the Sustainable Infrastructure Development System (SIDS) methodology launched last year, the government announced 50 projects, along with 12 special projects, that the methodology has already been applied to. These projects were fast-tracked for implementation along with all regulatory... →

INTERCHANGE Transport sector has 15 SIDS projects across the country

Various services available to sugar mills

16th July 2021 Engineering components company BMG is working closely with KwaZulu-Natal’s sugar mill engineers in the industry’s off-crop period to refurbish and replace worn components in preparation for high productivity in the upcoming season. Original-equipment manufacturer (OEM) Dorstener brand gearboxes... →

CARRY ON BMG has designed, fabricated and installed new carriers, reducing the normal 24-week delivery period to only four weeks

IoT use in South Africa to grow by 14% a year to 2025

By: Schalk Burger 15th July 2021 The use of Internet of Things (IoT) in South Africa is expected to grow by 14% a year from 2020 to 2025, says information and communications technology market research firm IDC Middle East, Africa and Turkey associate VP for sub-Saharan Africa Mark Walker. He notes that IoT adoption is expected... →

United Nations’ agri fund zooms in on private sector SMEs in Africa

By: Marleny Arnoldi 14th July 2021 The United Nations’ International Fund for Agricultural Development (Ifad) has launched a new financing programme that will help aid rural businesses in the food systems of the world’s poorest countries. The Private Sector Financing Programme aims to spearhead an increase in much-needed private... →

South Africa unrest hits farming, threatens food supply

By: Reuters 13th July 2021 South African farmers have been hit by days of unrest and looting as trucks carrying produce are prevented from delivering to markets, threatening food supplies, industry officials said. Crowds have this week clashed with police and ransacked shopping malls, with dozens reported killed as... →

Ivorian engineer wins Royal Academy award for biowaste innovation

By: Schalk Burger 9th July 2021 Côte d'Ivoire chemical engineer Noël N’guessan has won the Royal Academy of Engineering’s 2021 Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation. He developed biowaste equipment for smallholder farmers in West Africa to efficiently manage and generate income from biowaste. →

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