Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development, Thoko Didiza, has suspended the movement of cattle in South Africa due to increasing cases of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD). Minister Didiza made the announcement in a statement on Tuesday. According to the minister, the disease has been detected on farms, feedlots and communal areas in KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, North West, Gauteng, Mpumalanga and the Free State. South Africa is experiencing 116 outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease in six of the country's nine provinces. As a result, Minister Didiza halted the movement of all cattle for 21 days. This will be reviewed weekly. The latest FMD status update is available at this link.

FNB is hosting a series of workshops in various provinces for its farming clients. The first such workshop was held on 16 August in the Ceres area. Annelize Crosby, Agbiz head of Legal Intelligence, presented on a number of topical issues such as infrastructure and logistical challenges, pending legislation and regulations of concern as well as various Agbiz initiatives around energy security, public-private partnerships and buffering agricultural businesses against social instability. Agbiz also participated in a panel discussion on challenges in the sector facilitated by Theo Vorster. Agbiz CEO Theo Boshoff will present at the second workshop to be hosted in Kirkwood on 18 August.

We have spent the past couple of months in South Africa's agriculture drafting the growth strategy that would take the sector to greater heights than the gains we have seen since 1994. The sector has more than doubled in value terms since 1994. The lagging part of this growth has been including black farmers at the commercial level. They still form roughly 10% of the commercial output.

The growth strategy, such as the Agriculture and Agro-processing Master Plan, not only aims to boost the share of black farmers' participation in the sector but to support the established commercial farming for a robust, inclusive sector. This growth will be delivered through various interventions, including:

These are broad points, but the document takes a commodity-based approach and identifies key hindrances of inclusive growth and potential expansion areas. This makes the plan generally distinct from some files we have seen in the past. Agbiz chief economist Wandile Sihlobo discusses this subject in the linked blog post.

South Africa's agricultural export activity will likely soften this year from the 2021 record of US$12,4 billion. Lower production of key crops, animal disease spread and changes in phytosanitary regulations in key markets such as the EU will all weigh on the export activity this year. The changes in export volumes and values might not show in the year's first half but will likely reflect in the second half of the year. South Africa's agricultural exports for the first five months of this year amounted to US$5,06 billion, up just 2% from the corresponding period in 2021. Over this period, the European Union, United Kingdom, Japan, United Arab Emirates and several African countries were still the primary markets. Citrus, maize, apples and pears, wine, dates, figs, nuts, fruit juices, and wool were amongst the most dominant exportable products. Wandile Sihlobo discusses the latest data in the linked article.

We had two important data releases in the global environment these past two weeks; the FAO Global Food Price index for July 2022 and the USDA’s World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates report. The former paints an encouraging picture of a continuous softening of prices, having deteriorated by 9% in July from June to 141 points. This marked the fourth consecutive monthly decline, undermined by softening in the prices of vegetable oils and grains. These are the products that were behind the significant uptick in prices in the weeks and months after the Russian Federation’s invasion of Ukraine. The seasonal availability of grain supplies in South America following the harvest season, combined with the agreement reached between Ukraine and the Russian Federation to unblock Ukraine’s main Black Sea ports, thus led to a resumption of grain exports from Ukraine. Wandile Sihlobo shares his insights on the latest data in the linked article.

The August issue of Agbiz Grain Quarterly carries the message of the importance of sustainability at various levels - from alternative power sources to achieving net zero emissions. We take a deeper look at the World Benchmarking Association's benchmarks for company performance and how South African companies are faring. On a more practical note, two articles focus on grading issues - the grading of sunflower seed as well as national reporting of grades which now takes place weekly. There is also some feedback on the recent Agbiz conference and the issues discussed there. Please click here to peruse.

World Agricultural Production (WAP) is a monthly report produced by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Foreign Agricultural Service. This report gives data on crop acreage, yield and production for several commodities in major countries around the world. WAP reflects the estimates released in the USDA’s monthly World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates (WASDE). Current and past reports are available from this resource with monthly reports going as far back as 2002. Please click here to access the report.

In a media statement, the Land Bank stated that it has noted recent social media posts of claims that the bank and its legal representatives have been involved in aggressive methods of liquidating clients who have defaulted on their loan repayment obligations. The bank has reiterated its findings from an investigation it undertook last month following previous media claims of a similar nature, where there was no evidence to support the allegations that the bank and/or its legal representatives may have acted illegally, unethically, or implemented or used inappropriate or illegal practices or actions in any case involving the bank and its clients. Please click here to peruse.

In a statement released last week, the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development said that it had "managed to negotiate a settlement that will see clearing of citrus containers stuck in ports of entry in the European Union".There has been some progress for South African citrus as some of the containers trapped in European ports are released, but huge losses still loom. South Africa’s Citrus Growers Association (CGA) said there was a massive ongoing threat to the South African citrus industry resulting from the new EU false codling moth (FCM) regulations. “This threat is the long-term implementation of the unjustified, impractical and discriminatory EU FCM regulations on South African oranges, which are going to be impossible to implement by the local industry going forward,” said CGA chief executive Justin Chadwick. “To date, the current impasse has cost local citrus growers more than R200m in losses,” he continued. Read more in the linked article, first published on Eurofruit. For more information on the applicable legal texts and processes, and the dispute declared by South Africa under the rules of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), please follow the link to an article by the Trade Law Centre NPA (tralac).

Over the 2020/21 reporting period, the UK imported 16% more wine products and 15% more grapes from South Africa than they did a year earlier, according to South Africa’s official tourism, trade, and investment agency in the Western Cape, Wesgro. The Cape Trade Portal has made it significantly easier for importers to access the region’s most popular goods and services, with the most popular and well-loved among them being. When it comes to fruits the Brits have a taste for Cape grapes, apples, and citrus fruit. Grapes have been particularly popular and have seen their sales rise by 15%. Read more in the linked article, first published on FreshPlaza.

Port operations this past week were characterised by equipment breakdowns, congestion, power outages, and weather conditions causing delays. TFR still hasn't provided an estimated time of return on the second line of the Balgowan section of the container corridor after the derailment that occurred. On Thursday, a truck caught fire at one of the Maydon Wharf berths, while Transnet issued a detailed update on the automated Moormaster system and their action plan as to how they plan to repair and maintain the system over the short-, medium-, and long term. On the international shipping side, the latest global container throughput figures point to a volume consolidation in June, following a strong recovery in May. Consequently, the massive reduction in February caused by the Chinese New Year, the spread of Omicron, the ongoing effects of Russia's war with Ukraine, and others, have now been overcome to some extent. Read more in the linked BUSA Covid-19 Cargo Movement Update.

Agbiz members and role players in the agricultural value chain are invited to take part in a study conducted by Dr Munya Saruchera and Ms Amelia Motsepe from the Africa Centre for HIV/AIDS Management at Stellenbosch University. The purpose of this study is to assess your organisation’s HIV and AIDS legislation, workplace policies and programmes alignment with global guidance and current best practices in the context of goals determined by the Joint United Nations program on AIDS/HIV (UNAIDS) as well as how relevant and effective you think this alignment is. Please click here for more information.

On 11 August 2022 GWK’s shareholders voted in favour of the proposed amalgamation between GWK and VKB. The necessary shareholder resolutions were passed during a special GWK shareholders’ meeting held in Douglas. VKB’s board of directors had previously approved the transaction within their mandate, subject to approval by GWK’s shareholders, and the relevant competition and other regulatory body requirements and approvals. Nicolaas Kruger, chairman of the board of the GWK Group, says that, following a very constructive and thorough negotiation process, the GWK board unanimously supported the proposal of the transaction to GWK shareholders for approval. Read more in the linked media statement.

The Citrus Growers' Association of Southern Africa, shares the latest news in the citrus industry in its weekly update - From the desk of the CEO. Please click here to peruse

Keeping it Fresh, the newsletter of the Fresh Produce Exporters Forum (FPEF) contains all the recent relevant news and developments. Please click here for the latest edition.